IGT and Meruelo Gaming Form Strategic Sports Betting Partnership

International Game Technology announced  that the Company recently signed a strategic sports betting agreement with Meruelo Gaming LLC, an affiliate of the SAHARA Las Vegas and Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nev., and the Arizona Coyotes (National Hockey League team).

Under the terms of the agreement, Meruelo Gaming will leverage IGT's trading advisory services and PlaySports technology to power the SaharaBets statewide mobile sports betting app for Arizona.

"The scalable PlaySports technology, turnkey services, capabilities and vast sports betting experience make IGT SaharaBets' ideal sports betting growth partner in Arizona," said Alex Meruelo, Meruelo Group President & CEO."Giving Arizona Coyotes fans the option to place pre and in-game wagers online will increase fan engagement and boost the already contagious excitement of every play on the ice."

"Given Alex Meruelo's success in turning the Grand Sierra Resort into the vibrant, successful casino that it is today, and all the positive changes that he initiated with the SAHARA on the Las Vegas Strip, I am excited to see what he will do in Arizona as the owner of a professional sports team with its own sportsbook," said Joe Asher, IGT President of Sports Betting. "I'm thrilled that Alex decided to partner with IGT for the hardware, software and trading services to make it happen."