NBA Announces Historic Sports Betting Deal With MGM Resorts International

The post NBA Announces Historic Sports Betting Deal With MGM Resorts International appeared first on SportsHandle.

In what National Basketball Association commissioner Adam Silver and MGM Resorts International CEO Jim Murren hailed as a historic partnership, the professional sports league and major international gaming and hospitality company have struck an agreement on sports betting data and intellectual property, the first relationship of its kind.

The pair made the announcement at a press conference at the St. Regis New York Hotel in New York City on Tuesday. The deal will permit MGM and its properties offering sports betting to use official NBA league data as well as NBA logos and marks in conjunction with its sports betting products.

This agreement makes MGM the “official gaming partner” of the NBA, but this deal is not exclusive to MGM. In fact, eliciting a laugh from Murren and the audience, Silver invited more deals of this kind with other gaming entities.

NBA Sports Betting Deal With MGM Ushers In  ‘A Whole New World For Us’ and Positions MGM to ‘Win’ as Number of US Sports Betting States Expected to Grow

nba sports betting mgm adam silver data deal
Silver (L) and Murren (R)

It’s a 3-year-deal, of which the financials were not disclosed, will allow both sides to test the waters in what Silver called “a whole new world for us.”

“NBA’s three-year deal does not include rights to allow MGM to stream live NBA games on a mobile app that allows gamblers to bet on that app at the same time,” reported ESPN’s Darren Rovell. “That, many believe, is where the big money is.”

Silver indicated that the NBA recognized that their aggressive lobbying campaign in at least two dozen states with respect to sports betting legislation was an “uphill battle.” The league saw that states were resisting their preferred legislation, and further that a federal framework was not in the works.

But Silver indicated that the state-level battle is one that’s far from over as so far only six states have legalized (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Mississippi, West Virginia) or expanded their sports wagering offerings (Delaware). But so far, no state has passed legislation mandating the use official league data, or requiring operators or state lotteries to pay the league an “integrity fee” or royalty in any amount. New York came close.

[Also See: MGM, GVC Joint Venture in Sports Betting, Online Gaming Will Create ‘A Beast’]

In response to a question about the origin of the official league data — used to grade wagers — from Sportradar, Silver said that their  Sportradar deal does not govern its data in the U.S.  With respect to data for MGM and other potential partners, he said “The official data feed will come directly from the leagues operation center, or from a partner yet to be named by the NBA.”

Big Week for MGM.

Murren was pleased to have the MGM become the first to test these waters. MGM has now set the market rate for the cost of doing business of this kind directly with a professional sports league.

It’s been quite a week in MGM announcements, with news of its joint venture with the announced formation on Monday of a sports betting and online gaming joint venture with British betting group GVC Holdings Plc, owner of the Coral, Ladbrokes and Sportingbet brands.

Further on Monday, MGM and Boyd Gaming announced a new partnership on Monday that will expand MGM’s portfolio into states likely to offer sports betting and/or online gaming in the coming months or years. The partnership has an eye toward jurisdictions where either Boyd Gaming or MGM operates physical casino resorts and should be able to obtain licenses to operate online.

“We needeto have great brands,  which we have at MGM. We needed the right market access in the U.S. We have that. … we also need the best in-game betting experience which we get with GVC, and now we have tremendous data,” Murren summed it up.

He remarked that all of these pieces has MGM primed to “win” in the expanding U.S. sports betting market.

There was some news for New Jersey sportes betting tucked at the end of the presser, too. Said Murren: “At the end of this week we’ll be taking mobile bets from The Borgata via the Play MGM app.”

Don’t be a Square: Subscribe to our once-a-week newsletter for the latest sports betting news and insights

Get the latest content first.

We respect your privacy.
Don’t be a Square: Subscribe to our once-a-week newsletter for the latest sports betting news and insights

Get the latest content first.

We respect your privacy.

The post NBA Announces Historic Sports Betting Deal With MGM Resorts International appeared first on SportsHandle.

MGM, GVC Joint Venture in Sports Betting, Online Gaming Will Create ‘A Beast’

The post MGM, GVC Joint Venture in Sports Betting, Online Gaming Will Create ‘A Beast’ appeared first on SportsHandle.

The “British Invasion” in the emerging enterprise of legal sports betting in the U.S. is continuing with the official announcement today (Monday) that British betting group GVC Holdings Plc, owner of the Coral, Ladbrokes and Sportingbet brands, will form a sports betting and online gaming joint venture with MGM Resorts International.

GVC would join other British controlled betting companies such as William Hill, Paddy Power Betfair, bet365 and others that have or are about to assume a major role in the U.S. as a risk manager and/or sports wagering software provider to U.S. gambling companies that have opened or expect to soon open sportsbooks at their U.S. operations.

Jim Murren, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MGM Resorts, said in a company media release, “We are proud to join forces with GVC, the largest and most dynamic global online betting operator, with existing reputable and trusted operations in the U.S.” Murren added, “With MGM Resorts’ expertise and leading position in key markets across the U.S., this historic partnership will be positioned to become the instant leader in technology, market access, sports relationships and brands.”

MGM and British Betting Group GVC Teaming Up In Sports Betting and Online Gaming Venture, As More Legal Sports Betting States Open Up Big Opportunity in U.S.

Initial media reports indicate GVC and MGM will contribute $100 million apiece as part of a 50:50 venture that would encompass a 25-year commitment, with an option for either company to buy the other out after 10 years.

GVC already operates MGM’s online casino initiative in New Jersey. Murren’s mention of “sports relationships and brands” is in apparent reference the company’s title sponsorship of the NBA Summer League and its ownership of the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces franchise.

As earlier reported by Sports Handle, MGM is expected to be one of the U.S. market’s largest sportsbook operators as various states legalize sports betting as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court May ruling that said the law limiting single-game betting to Nevada was unconstitutional. MGM has already begun taking sports bets at The Borgata in Atlantic City and will open at two casino/resorts along Mississippi’s Gulf Coast as soon as state regulators finish due diligence in that state, possibly as early as Wednesday.

MGM now operates National Harbor, a major casino/resort near Washington. D.C., will open MGM Springfield in Massachusetts in late August, and is completing its acquisition of Empire City Casino and Yonkers Raceway, a racino bordering New York City.

One industry insider told Sports Handle, “It is a beast of a deal if it comes to fruition.” 

mgm gvc sports betting online betting venture new jersey

Although MGM is a major Nevada sports betting operator with casinos and sportsbooks all along the Las Vegas Strip, the emerging multi-billion dollar sports betting business along the East Coast alone and the risk involved, may be the motivation behind the proposed GVC/MGM joint venture, industry observers say. They indicate these East Coast sportsbooks alone could potentially take in many millions of dollars in wagers each day.

Such high volume betting action would subject the bet takers to major liability. Forming a new company would spread the risk and make the emerging business more palatable to Wall Street and investors, Sport Handle was told.

Additionally, if MGM were to operate sportsbooks through a different company, with their smaller margins and greater financial exposure, its core casino/resort business would be insulated from potential losses.

MGM recently converted to an IGT betting platform at its numerous Nevada properties on the Las Vegas Strip and is using it at its newly opened sport betting operation at The Borgata in Atlantic City. It’s unclear if the joint venture would use a GVC betting platform rather than IGT’s.  

And More News Today.

MGM and Boyd Gaming announced a new partnership on Monday that will expand MGM’s portfolio into states likely to offer sports betting and/or online gaming in the coming months or years. The partnership has an eye toward jurisdictions where either Boyd Gaming or MGM Resorts operate physical casino resorts and should be able to obtain licenses to operate online.

Boyd will eventually bring to the table eight states where MGM does not operate – Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Missouri.

This is the second partnership between MGM and Boyd. The companies were 50-50 partners in Atlantic City’s Borgata Resort, but MGM bought out Boyd’s stake two years ago.

“We are excited to team yet again with Boyd Gaming on this unprecedented partnership,” Murren said. “We look forward to expanding our entertainment options for guests beyond their visits to our land-based resorts.”

CDC Gaming Reports contributed to this story.

The post MGM, GVC Joint Venture in Sports Betting, Online Gaming Will Create ‘A Beast’ appeared first on SportsHandle.