Live from the Turf Club at Monmouth Park Racetrack - where the first legal sports bet in New Jersey was placed by Governor Phil Murphy in June, 2018 – Gambling.com Group Plc presents the first-annual American Gambling Awards. 

Designed to reward excellence in the online legal sports betting market in the United States, the AGA’s presented 14 Golden Eagle statues to stakeholders from politicians to sportsbooks. ESPN draft analyst and New York Times best-selling author (and Badder Beats veteran) Matthew Berry presided over the ceremonies and was delighted that acceptance speeches were brief or non-existent.  

The sushi table was pretty good, too. 

Over on the red carpet, hosts Brant James and Ryan Butler, nattily dressed in their finest awards show attire, swooped winners out of the crowd like voracious bears at a salmon stream. David Rebuck of the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement? Got him. (He was presented with the first-ever Golden Eagle as regulator of the year). Jamie Shea of DraftKings? Got here after her group took home (all the way to Hoboken) top honors in fantasy sports. 

EPISODE 32 TIME STAMPS 

:55 – Michigan Representative Brandt Iden (he and Brant early tried to convince him to ditch that extraneous ‘d’) on being a Golden Eagle finalist. (He did not get to bring one home, however.) 

1:38 – That said, he’s got his nose to the grindstone and thinks he will get legal sports betting over the line in 2019, perhaps even by football season. 

1:50 – Rep. Iden wants to keep those Michigan dollars, building things for Michiganders. 

2:37 – Is there momentum for sports betting not only in Michigan, but in the Midwest? 

3:32 – Are lawmakers cognizant of what sports betting bills entail and what the benefits can be? 

4:58 - “Senator Ray” Lesniak wins “Industry Supporter of the Year” in absentia. Gambling.com Group Plc founder and CEO Charles Gillespie briefly joins Matthew Berry at the podium to explain. 

5:52 – Suddenly, Sen. Raymond Lesniak is on the phone, accepting his award in the first seminal moment of the first American Gambling Awards. 

7:07 – Jamie Shea, director of digital sportsbook at DraftKings on defending the fantasy turf and going after FanDuel in the sports betting realm. 

8:26 – Jamie Shea on how DraftKings differentiates itself. (Hint: data). 

9:25 – Where will the Golden Eagle perch? 

9:52 - Jamie Shea considers ripping some biceps curls with the Golden Eagle. 

10:05 – Rock star regulator David Rebuck deflects all the credit he absorbs to his staff. 

11:05 – On being the template for legal sports betting in the United States. 

12:18 – David Rebuck on the regulator as a collaborator with operators. 

14:28 – On the biggest piece of advice he’d give to counterparts: listen. 

15:52 – What does New Jersey Year 2.0 portend? 

17:04 – David Rebuck breaks news: the Score’s product will enter the ‘lab’ with folks with the laptops for testing the third week of June. 

17:37 – Can New Jersey really get ahead and stay ahead of Nevada in terms of handle? 

19:05 – On wrapping his fingers around the first Golden Eagle ever presented. 

19:49 – Matthew Berry presents the award for “Operator of the Year” to Rush Interactive.