Dave & Buster's is jumping into betting this year. The arcade and restaurant chain will add a feature to its app that allows social wagering for its customers, according to a new report from CNBC.
Dave & Busters is partnering with Lucra, an emerging player in the peer-to-peer betting space, to offer customers who are 18 and older, and loyalty members to bet on games like Skee-Ball within the coming months.
"We're thrilled to work with Lucra to bring this exciting new gaming platform to our customers," Dave & Buster's senior vice president of entertainment and attractions Simon Murray told CNBC." This new partnership gives our loyalty members real-time, unrivaled gaming experiences, and reinforces our commitment to continuing to elevate our customer experience through innovative, cutting-edge technology."
Lucra was recently named one Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies this year and previously partnered with TennisOne and DUPR to create real-money competition platforms for Tennis and Pickle ball.
Company CEO, Michael Madding, says Lucra doesn't require the same regulations as sports betting and online casinos because their games are skill-based. “Lucra operates as a skill-based company, so potential games that are in scope are skill-based games,” he told US Bets.
As it stands, there are unanswered questions about how Dave & Buster's and Lucra will regulate who can use the app and where. The types of games customers at Dave & Buster's will be allowed to wager on also remains to be seen.
“The real goal here is to find ways for their customers to connect with each other," Madding said to US Bets. "There are a lot of different gameplay formats that are under consideration that are really focused on social interaction and connectivity.”
