This Sunday will mark a very successful day for sports betting companies as the Super Bowl attracts record revenues for U.S. sports gambling.
Key Details
- On Sunday, February 12, the NFL will host Super Bowl XLVII—between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.
- Last year’s Super Bowl received more than 208 million viewers—with 70,000 fans attending SoFi Stadium in California.
- With such high viewership, sports gambling is expected to hit record highs this year, with as many as 50 million Americans betting $16 billion this Sunday. The American Gaming Association notes this is a 66% increase from last year.
- 36 U.S. states and DC permit legalized sports gambling, and the industry earned $7.5 billion in revenue last year, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Why It’s Important
This year’s Super Bowl comes with an unexpected benefit for fans of sports gamblers. As The Wall Street Journal notes, this year’s Super Bowl will be the first one hosted in a state that allows sports gambling. Attendees at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, will be allowed to make mobile sports bets from the stadium.
Sports betting has seen notable growth in interest in the past year. As pandemic lockdowns cooled off over the course of the year, public interest in sports events and public gatherings increased. Major sports betting companies like FanDuel and DraftKings sought new partnerships and avenues to take advantage of increased interest in sports gambling—with ESPN even considering turning DraftKings into its official partner. FanDuel rebranded a horse racing channel into its own 24/7 sports network.
Both FanDuel and DraftKings have promotional campaigns for Sunday’s game, with the latter teaming up with Molson Coors Beverage Co. for a $500,000 prize to who can guess what happens in the company’s Superbowl commercial. The former is offering a prize if retired NFL star Rob Gronkowski can make a live field goal during commercial breaks, The Journal reports.
Notable Quote
“The fact that the Super Bowl is being played in a legal sports-betting state was almost unthinkable five years ago. It’s a testament to the progress we’re making,” says American Gaming Association CEO Bill Miller.
