CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Rush Street Interactive, Inc. (NYSE: RSI) (“RSI”), a leading online sports betting and casino company in the United States, today announced that it has entered into a sports betting operations partnership with Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company (NASDAQ: HOFV, HOFVW) (“HOFV”), the only resort, entertainment and media company centered around professional football. Through this 10-year agreement, and subject to procurement of necessary licenses, RSI will operate a premier retail sportsbook at the Hall of Fame Village powered by Johnson Controls, a multi-use sports, entertainment and media destination surrounding the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is an inspiring museum and attraction that pays tribute to the talents and triumphs of professional football and is home to the world’s largest collection of professional football memorabilia.
The Hall of Fame Village is one of the largest and most exciting ongoing construction projects in Ohio and today connects the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium – which hosts the first NFL preseason game annually – and the Hall of Fame Village Sports Complex. HOFV is currently expanding the destination with the additions of a performance center, indoor water park, Hilton hotel, mixed-use office and retail space, and a Fan Engagement Zone, the latter of which is expected to include the sportsbook as well as other restaurant and retail offerings.
The RSI – HOFV agreement also features an exciting sponsorship component, allowing RSI to leverage HOFV’s signage, branding and certain media assets. Moreover, HOFV has access to Pro Football Hall of Famers and the legends of the game through its brand partnerships.
“We are excited to partner with the Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company, a unique sports and entertainment company with exceptional reach in professional football and beyond,” said Richard Schwartz, Chief Executive Officer of RSI. “HOFV shares RSI’s drive to create fun, memorable experiences for customers as well as our passion for building a one-of-a-kind destination that will delight the millions of guests that will visit the Hall of Fame Village campus each year. We look forward to offering a best-in-class sportsbook commensurate with the prestige of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Hall of Fame Village that fans across the country and world can enjoy.”
“With the legalization of sports betting in Ohio, we see a variety of opportunities and benefits across our company’s multiple business lines,” said Michael Crawford, President and Chief Executive Officer of HOFV. “We considered many different retail sportsbook operators, but selected RSI because of its outstanding reputation, impressive sportsbook results in other markets, and the quality and experience of its team. We are thrilled to work with RSI to bring a retail sportsbook to the Hall of Fame Village’s Fan Engagement Zone and provide guests and fans a new and enhanced way to interact with their favorite sports, all conveniently from our campus.”
RSI is currently live with real-money gaming operations in twelve U.S. states, including the neighboring markets of Pennsylvania, Indiana, and West Virginia. Notably, RSI was the first company to launch legal online sportsbooks in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana and Colorado. Based on publicly available data, RSI is the retail market leader in the three most populous states that have legalized retail sports betting – Pennsylvania, Illinois, and New York.
About Rush Street Interactive
Rush Street Interactive is a trusted online gaming and sports entertainment company focused on regulated markets in the United States and Latin America. Through its brands, BetRivers.com and PlaySugarHouse.com, RSI was an early entrant in many regulated jurisdictions and is currently live with real-money mobile, online and/or retail operations in twelve U.S. states: Pennsylvania, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Michigan, Indiana, Virginia, Colorado, Iowa, West Virginia and Arizona. RSI is also active internationally, having been recognized as Sportsbook Operator of the Year at the SBC Latinoamérica Awards 2021, where it offers its online casino and sportsbook in the regulated gaming market of Colombia on RushBet.co. RSI offers, through its proprietary online gaming platform, some of the most popular online casino games and sports betting options in the United States. Founded in 2012 in Chicago by gaming industry veterans, RSI was named the 2020 Global Gaming Awards Digital Operator of the Year and the 2021 EGR North America Awards Casino Operator of the Year, Customer Services Operator of the Year and Social Gaming Operator of the Year. RSI is committed to industry-leading responsible gaming practices and seeks to provide its customers with the resources and services they need to play responsibly. For more information, visit www.rushstreetinteractive.com.
About Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company
Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company (NASDAQ: HOFV, HOFVW) is a resort and entertainment company leveraging the power and popularity of professional football and its legendary players in partnership with the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Headquartered in Canton, Ohio, the Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company is the owner of the Hall of Fame Village powered by Johnson Controls, a multi-use sports, entertainment and media destination centered around the Pro Football Hall of Fame's campus. Additional information on the Company can be found at www.HOFREco.com.
About the Hall of Fame Village powered by Johnson Controls
Hall of Fame Village powered by Johnson Controls is a multi-use sports, entertainment and media destination centered around the Pro Football Hall of Fame's campus in Canton, Ohio. Owned by the Hall of Fame Resort and Entertainment Company (NASDAQ: HOFV, HOFVW), the Village currently has over $250 million worth of assets under management and is one of the largest ongoing construction projects in Ohio. Phase I of the project entailed the construction of the Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, a world-class 20,000 seat, sports and entertainment stadium, and the National Youth Football and Sports Complex. Phase II, currently under construction, will add the Constellation Center for Excellence, the Center for Performance, a Fan Engagement Zone, a Hall of Fame indoor waterpark and a Hilton Tapestry Hotel. Phase III is currently in planning stages. For more information, visit www.HOFVillage.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. RSI's actual results may differ from their expectations, estimates and projections and consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Words such as "expect," "estimate," "project," "budget," "forecast," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "may," "will," "could," "should," "believes," "predicts," "potential," "continue," and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, RSI's expectations about its partnership with HOFV, what RSI's anticipated offerings and benefits arising from that partnership will include, the timing of any events associated with the partnership and RSI's future performance with respect to that partnership. These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected results. Most of these factors are outside RSI's control and are difficult to predict. Factors that may cause such differences include, without limitation, changes in applicable laws or regulations, unanticipated product or service delays, and other risks and uncertainties indicated from time to time in RSI's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, including those under "Risk Factors" therein, and in RSI's other filings with the SEC. RSI cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exclusive. RSI cautions readers not to place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. RSI does not undertake or accept any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in its expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.