According to the Financial Times, Ladbrokeshas purchased a 65% stake in Las Vegas-based Stadium Technology Group in preparation to expand into the U.S. market on a broader scale. Richard Glynn, Ladbrokes’ Chief Executive Officer, told the Financial Times why Ladbrokes would seek to partner with the software provider: “The size of the U.S. market and potential for positive regulatory change in the coming years make it a sensible place to establish a presence. Stadium Technology is already one of the key software suppliers to casinos in Nevada and Delaware and it has the potential to expand.”

Stadium Technology Group specializes in sports betting technology and Ladbrokes’ acquisition of it came with a $3 million price tag. According to eGamingReview (EGR), Ladbrokes can expand its ownership in the company going forward per the terms of the contract: “It has a retained option to buy the remaining 35% of the business over the next five years on a performance-related basis.”

In Las Vegas, there are several casinos using Stadium Technology Group’s software already, according to EGR, including the Cosmopolitan, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock, M Resort (pictured), Palazzo, Treasure Island, and Venetian. EGR added, “A spokesman for the company told EGR that Ladbrokes’ primary objective in the U.S. is to secure a ‘regulated, licensed presence‘ and that Stadium was a business that had proven innovative technology.”

Nevada is already vetting potential licenseesfor a regulated online poker market and could allow rooms to launch later this year. Given the recent Department of Justice clarification that the Wire Act of 1961 – a major overarching Federal bill – only applies to sports betting, the DOJ has presumably given the green light for intrastate internet gambling.

Gambling law expert I. Nelson Rose called the DOJ’s opinion, which was made public just two days before Christmas, “a gift to the states, which can now raise hundreds of millions of dollars and create thousands of jobs because there is no other Federal law that would apply to intrastate gambling… There is no Federal law that would apply to interstate or even international online gambling that is legal under state law, except sports betting and lotteries.”

Sports betting could soon be expanding in the U.S. as well. Earlier this week, New Jersey Governor and rumored Republican Vice Presidential candidate Chris Christie signed a bill into law legalizing sports betting in that state. However, in order for it to be implemented, the state’s Attorney General must first overturn the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, or PASPA, which limits sports betting to a handful of states.

State Senator Raymond Lesniak (pictured) is spearheading the sports betting push in New Jersey, as well as an effort to legalize intrastate internet gaming. Lesniak was quoted this week in the Press of Atlantic City as saying, “Our Attorney General now has the tools to go to Federal court to overturn the Federal ban on sports betting, so next year, this time, Atlantic City will be hopping with fans betting on the Giants or Eagles in next year’s Super Bowl, or if miracles can happen, even the Jets.”

Lesniak appears likely to introduce the newest version of his internet gambling bill in the next few weeks, according to reports. Last year, Christie vetoed a bill creating what would have been the nation’s first intrastate online gaming market, but the newest version reportedly addresses several of his concerns.

The Press also reported that earlier this week, Christie signed another bill related to gaming into law. The measure “would expand gambling in New Jersey by allowing horse racing fans to place bets on electronic terminals in bars or restaurants in the northern and central parts of the state.”

Ladbrokes is traded on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol “LAD” and closed Thursday’s session up 2.15% on the day to 137.90 pence. “LAD” has been trading in a pretty wide range since July, when it fetched as much as 155 pence a share in London. Three months later, the company’s shares sank all the way to 114 pence, a drop of 26%.