Posted on: August 15, 2024, 12:09 pm.
Last updated on: August 14, 2024, 05:10.
Arkansas Edge, the University of Arkansas’ Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) collective, plans to host a 50/50 online raffle to raise millions of dollars to attract notable talent to the Razorbacks programs.
Arkansas Edge is applying to the Arkansas Racing Commission (ARC), the state’s gaming and racing regulator, for permission to amend its rules to allow 50/50 electronic sweepstakes. Conducting such an online sweepstakes would be costly because administering an Internet sweepstakes would require Arkansas Edge to partner with and use a geolocation technology service provider such as GeoComply to ensure that only people physically located in the state participate. There would also be “Know Your Customer” components.
To reduce these overhead costs and provide Arkansas Edge with more funds for the NIL sponsorship of the Razorbacks’ college athletes in the highly competitive and heavily NIL-funded SEC (Southeastern Conference), the Saracen Casino Resort in Pine Bluff, Jefferson County, is willing to make its Bet Saracen Sportsbook available for the online raffle initiative.
Because Bet Saracen already has geofencing technology and KYC protocols in place that allow anyone 21 or older with a physical location in Arkansas to place online sports bets, the casino, owned and operated by the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma, says it can run the 50/50 electronic raffle.
Big catch
Saracen officials say if Arkansas wants to allow an online raffle to support the Razorbacks’ NIL program, the state could also legalize iGaming — online slot machines and interactive table games. Casino officials have submitted regulatory changes to the ARC’s online sports betting rules to allow raffles and iGaming.
Saracen leaders have recommended changing the definition of “interactive gaming” to include “a drawing game without loss of information conducted by means of an electronic device or machine for the benefit of a collective by name, image and likeness, in accordance with the Arkansas Student-Athlete Publicity Rights Act.”
We would have an innovative NIL fundraising strategy that no other state has,” said Saracen Chief Marketing Officer Carlton Saffa The Best of Arkansas Sports.
“I graduated from the University of Arkansas,” Saffa added. “My wife graduated from the University of Arkansas. My children have no choice. They will attend the University of Arkansas. That’s what we have to focus on.”
As for online slots and table games, Saffa said authorizing the state to sell such interactive games to its three brick-and-mortar casinos would help rid the state of illegal offshore websites and apps that specifically target players in states where iGaming is not allowed.
Immediate pushback
The chances of Arkansas Edge and Bet Saracen reaching NIL together are not good.
The state’s Charitable Bingo and Raffles Act requires that bingo games and raffles be tied to charities that have been recognized by the state for at least five years. Arkansas Edge is not a 503(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
To get around these concerns, Arkansas Edge and Saracen carefully drafted their proposed regulatory provisions, calling a 50/50 online lottery a “NIL draw game.”
Jim Hudson, Arkansas’s Secretary of Finance and Administration, is not convinced.
We believe the proposed NIL lottery is not permitted under existing Arkansas law and could not be implemented through a rule change alone,” Hudson said in a statement.
“It is also important to note that the proposal is part of a broader call to allow online casino gaming. This would represent a significant expansion of gambling in Arkansas and should not be rushed without understanding the impact on our state,” Hudson continued.
