Five major sports betting operators including FanDuel, BetMGM, DraftKings, Fanatics, and Penn Interactive (ESPN Bet) have submitted bids to the Department of Liquor and Lottery to obtain online sports betting licenses in Vermont. 

The operators are the first to submit applications to operate in the Green Mountain State after Vermont Governor Phil Scott signed the state’s online sports betting bill into law earlier in June.

As per reports, sports betting is expected to launch in Vermont in January 2024 and will feature between two to six operators. The above-named operators will go through a “competitive bidding process” to receive a license. The state’s Department of Liquor and Lottery will regulate the market and award the sports betting licenses. 

As part of the process, the operators will be required to submit bid packages to the department that include a proposed online sports betting tax rate they would be willing to pay to run operations in the state. 

The bidders who work with companies based in Vermont, using products manufactured in the state, and are “demonstrating business practices that promote clean energy and address climate change,” will be given more preference. 

If the Department of Liquor and Lottery approves the license for an operator, the minimum period of a contract will be three years at the cost of $550,000 for a license. The applications will be evaluated based on certain technical and revenue criteria on a 1,000-point grading rubric, with a minimum sports betting tax rate of 20%. 

The department will allow for 200 maximum points based on revenue criteria, or the applicant's proposed tax rate. Bidders who propose a 20% to 30% tax rate will receive 25 points, while bidders who propose a tax rate of 51% or higher will receive 100 points.  The remaining 100 possible points will be awarded for estimated potential gross and adjusted gross sports wagering revenue.

Additionally, the final 800 possible points will be awarded for technical criteria, including the strength of the bidder’s sports betting services, its responsible gaming plan, and company integrity and ethics. The contracts will likely be awarded in October or November.

https://www.yogonet.com/international/news/2023/09/14/68763-vermont-five-sports-betting-operators-submit-bids-to-obtain-mobile-licenses