It's high stakes for UK companies as sports wagering starts to spread in America.

From Tuesday, brand-new rules on wagering entered impact in Delaware, a small east coast state about 2 hours from Washington.

Neighbouring New Jersey might start accepting sports bets as early as Friday.

The modifications are the first in what could become a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the method for states to permit sports betting.

The industry sees a "as soon as in a generation" chance to establish a new market in sports-mad America, said Dublin-based monetary analyst David Jennings, who heads leisure research study at Davy.

For UK companies, which are coming to grips with debt consolidation, increased online competition and harder rules from UK regulators, the timing is particularly opportune.

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But the industry says relying on the US stays a risky bet, as UK business face complex state-by-state regulation and competition from entrenched local interests.

"It's something that we're really concentrating on, but equally we do not wish to overhype it," said James Midmer, representative at Paddy Power Betfair, which recently purchased the US fantasy sports website FanDuel.

'Require time'

The US represented about 23% of the world's $244bn (₤ 182bn) in gaming revenue last year, according to a report by Technavio, external released in January.

Firms are wishing to take advantage of more of that activity after last month's decision, which overruled a 1992 federal law that disallowed states outside of Nevada and a few others from authorising sports betting wagering.

The ruling found the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not in fact legalise sports betting, leaving that concern to local lawmakers.

That is expected to cause substantial variation in how companies get certified, where sports wagering can happen, and which events are open to speculation - with big implications for the size of the marketplace.

Potential income varieties from $4.2 bn to almost $20bn annually depending on aspects like how numerous states transfer to legalise, Oxford Economics approximated in a 2017 research study for the American Gaming Association.

"There was a lot of 'this is going to be big'", said Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for experts KPMG.

Now, he stated: "I think the majority of individuals ... are looking at this as, 'it's a chance however it's not going to be $20bn and it's going to be state by state and it's going to require time'."

'Remains to be seen"

Chris Grove, managing director at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, anticipates that 32 states will legalise sports wagering in some type by 2023, creating a market with about $6bn in annual earnings.

But bookies face a far different landscape in America than they do in the UK, where wagering shops are a frequent sight.

US laws restricted betting mainly to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip till relatively recently.

In the popular creativity, sports betting has actually long been connected to a 1919 baseball World Series match-fixing scandal.

States have also been sluggish to legalise lots of types of online gaming, despite a 2011 Justice Department viewpoint that appeared to get rid of obstacles.

While sports wagering is usually seen in its own category, "it plainly stays to be seen whether it gets the type of momentum individuals believe it will," said Keith Miller, law teacher at Drake University and co-author of a book about sports betting policy.

David Carruthers is the former primary executive of BetonSports, who was apprehended in the US in 2006 for running an overseas online sportsbook and served jail time.

Now a specialist, he states UK companies need to approach the market thoroughly, choosing partners with caution and avoiding errors that could result in regulator backlash.

"This is a chance for the American sports betting bettor ... I'm not sure whether it is a chance for business," he says. "It truly is reliant on the result of [state] legislation and how the company operators pursue the opportunity."

'It will be partnerships'

As legalisation starts, sports wagering firms are lobbying to ward off high tax rates, in addition to requests by US sports betting leagues, which wish to gather a percentage of profits as an "integrity charge".

International companies face the added challenge of an effective existing video gaming market, with gambling establishment operators, state-run lotteries and Native American people that are looking for to safeguard their turf.

Analysts state UK companies will need to strike partnerships, providing their proficiency and technology in order to make inroads.

They indicate SBTech's current announcement that it is supplying technology for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the sort of offers most likely to materialise.

"It will be a win-win for everybody, but it will be collaborations and it will be driven by innovation," Mr Hawkley said.

'It will just depend'

Joe Asher, president at William Hill US, is clear-eyed about the realities.

The business has been investing in the US market because 2011, when it bought three US companies to establish a presence in Nevada.

William Hill now uses about 450 individuals in the US and has revealed partnerships with casinos in Iowa and New Jersey.

It works as threat supervisor for the Delaware Lottery and has invested millions together with a local designer in a New Jersey horse racing track.

Mr Asher said William Hill has become a home name in Nevada but that's not always the goal everywhere.

"We certainly plan to have a very significant brand presence in New Jersey," he said. "In other states, it will just depend on regulation and possibly who our local partner is."

"The US is going to be the most significant sports betting market on the planet," he included. "Obviously that's not going to happen on the first day."