The Nevada Independent
Written by: Howard Stutz
For nearly three decades, Joe Asher has been a central figure in the nationwide expansion of legalized sports betting.
Now, he’s challenging the larger industry he was once a part of.
Asher, 57, plans to launch Boomer’s Sportsbook — which will be Nevada’s only non-casino-owned sports betting operation — by the start of the fall football season.
“I know there is an appetite from independent casino operators for an independent sports book,” Asher said in an interview.
For smaller casinos, Asher’s pitch is that having an independent operator avoids corporate gaming giants — potential competition — from managing the sportsbook inside their property and having access to their customers. For sports bettors, independent books often provide different betting lines on games, such as a half-point in one direction or better moneyline odds.
State gaming regulators will consider Boomer’s — named after one of the Asher family’s favorite dogs — license application in July.
The start will be small, similar to how Asher launched Brandywine Bookmaking in Las Vegas in 2008. The company operated more than a dozen sportsbooks in Nevada under the brand name Lucky’s Race & Sports before it was acquired by the United Kingdom-based William Hill sports betting network in 2012……
