It's high stakes for UK companies as sports wagering starts to spread in America.
From Tuesday, brand-new guidelines on wagering entered result in Delaware, a tiny east coast state about two hours from Washington.
Neighbouring New Jersey could start accepting sports betting bets as early as Friday.
The modifications are the very first in what could become a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the method for states to allow sports wagering.
The industry sees a "as soon as in a generation" chance to develop a new market in sports betting-mad America, said Dublin-based monetary expert David Jennings, who heads leisure research at Davy.
For UK firms, which are coming to grips with debt consolidation, increased online competition and tougher guidelines from UK regulators, the timing is particularly opportune.
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But the market states counting on the US remains a dangerous bet, as UK companies face complicated state-by-state regulation and competitors from established regional interests.
"It's something that we're actually focusing on, but similarly we don't wish to overhype it," said James Midmer, spokesman at Paddy Power Betfair, which recently purchased the US dream sports website FanDuel.
'Take time'
The US accounted for about 23% of the world's $244bn (₤ 182bn) in gaming profits in 2015, according to a report by Technavio, external published in January.
Firms are wanting to use more of that activity after last month's decision, which overruled a 1992 federal law that disallowed states beyond Nevada and a couple of others from authorising sports betting wagering.
The ruling found the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not actually legalise sports betting wagering, leaving that question to local lawmakers.
That is anticipated to lead to significant variation in how companies get certified, where sports betting wagering can occur, and which occasions are open to speculation - with big implications for the size of the marketplace.
Potential revenue varieties from $4.2 bn to nearly $20bn annually depending on aspects like the number of states relocate to legalise, Oxford Economics estimated in a 2017 study for the American Gaming Association.
"There was a lot of 'this is going to be huge'", stated Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for consultants KPMG.
Now, he said: "I believe most individuals ... are taking a look at this as, 'it's an opportunity but 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, forecasts that 32 states will legalise sports betting in some form by 2023, developing a market with about $6bn in annual revenue.
But bookies deal with a far various landscape in America than they carry out in the UK, where betting shops are a frequent sight.
US laws restricted gambling mainly to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip up until fairly just recently.
In the popular creativity, sports betting wagering has actually long been linked to a 1919 baseball World Series match-fixing scandal.
States have also been sluggish to legalise lots of kinds of online gaming, despite a 2011 Justice Department viewpoint that appeared to eliminate challenges.
While sports betting wagering is usually seen in its own category, "it clearly remains to be seen whether it gets the sort 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 chief executive of BetonSports, who was arrested in the US in 2006 for running an overseas online sportsbook and served jail time.
Now a specialist, he says UK companies must approach the market thoroughly, selecting partners with care and preventing missteps that could cause regulator backlash.
"This is a chance for the American sports betting wagerer ... I'm uncertain whether it is a chance for business," he states. "It truly depends on the result of [state] legislation and how the company operators pursue the chance."
'It will be partnerships'
As legalisation begins, sports wagering companies are lobbying to ward off high tax rates, in addition to demands by US sports leagues, which wish to collect a percentage of revenue as an "integrity fee".
International business deal with the included difficulty of an effective existing video gaming market, with casino operators, state-run lotteries and Native American tribes that are looking for to defend their turf.
Analysts say UK companies will require to strike partnerships, using their expertise and technology in order to make inroads.
They indicate SBTech's recent statement that it is offering technology for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the type of deals most likely to materialise.
"It will be a win-win for everyone, 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 truths.
The company has been investing in the US market because 2011, when it acquired three US companies to establish an existence in Nevada.
William Hill now employs about 450 individuals in the US and has revealed collaborations with gambling establishments in Iowa and New Jersey.
It works as risk supervisor for the Delaware Lottery and has invested millions together with a local developer in a New Jersey horse racing track.
Mr Asher said William Hill has actually ended up being a family name in Nevada but that's not always the objective everywhere.
"We certainly intend to have a very considerable brand name existence in New Jersey," he said. "In other states, it will simply depend upon guideline and potentially who our local partner is."
"The US is going to be the greatest sports betting market on the planet," he added. "Obviously that's not going to take place on day one."
