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  • Roar Digital is introducing BetMGM Poker in Michigan later in February, the company has confirmed
  • Michigan already welcomed PokerStars MI in January, and the company is hosting the inaugural $1M GTD MI COOP
  • BetMGM is also launching partypoker in Pennsylvania ahead of an anticipated merger of poker player pools from across state lines later in 2021

Michigan will welcome a second online poker card room with Roar Digital announcing the launch of BetMGM Poker for later in February.

BetMGM Poker Takes a Chance on Michigan

Roar Digital will be launching online poker in Michigan later in February, the company has confirmed. Roar Digital, which is a joint-venture between MGM Resorts and Entain, previously GVC Holdings, has been committed to the Michigan market, launching both iGaming and sports betting products in January.

Moving forward, the company is upping the ante and introducing BetMGM Poker in the newly-regulated Michigan poker industry, a first for the company. BetMGM will be drawing on its experience in online poker from New Jersey, where it runs the partypoker NJ, BetMGM Poker and Borgata Poker brands.

Players who already have accounts with the sportsbook and online casino in the state can automatically switch to BetMGM Poker MI instead. The company will be joining PokerStars MI, which is the first company to launch online poker product in the state on January 29, 2021.

Now, the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) has allowed BetMGM to follow and enter what is quickly shaping up to be a pivotal market. With Michigan already generating a decent interest in terms of player registrations, the state can benefit from another venue.

Michigan’s Poker Community Going Strong

It’s interesting to see that PokerStars MI is already overtaking places such as New Jersey and Pennsylvania in terms of poker traffic, according to Poker Industry PRO, an industry publication focusing on hard data.

Based on Poker Industry PRO, Michigan’s cash games traffic has outpaced that of PokerStars PA. Besides, PokerStars is already hosting an inaugural $1 million GTD Championship of Online Poker. With things looking up for Michigan, BetMGM and PokerStars will seek to pool their player bases and create a more permanent and worthwhile poker community.

Since the latest Opinion on the Wire Act has been defeated by the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, this means that companies can officially pool their resources, or player bases, creating even bigger events and more worthwhile cash games traffic.

BetMGM is also expanding elsewhere in the United States, but not necessarily under its own brand. Rather, BetMGM is pushing the partypoker PA brand in Pennsylvania, creating a diverse poker ecosystem across the United States for a shot at a more competitive poker community at home.