aaa.jpg)
Legal sports betting has exploded across the country over the past few years, with more than two-thirds of US states now offering licensed and regulated betting. For baseball fans, that could mean soon Place bets live on screen during the broadcast.
“I see that at some point it will become an alternative digital product.” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred recently said on Marchand and Ourand podcast. “You’ll always get that clean stream. If we get there to bet off-screen, it will be a separate digital stream that a real gambler can sign up for.”
Betting via remote control
Many leagues have jumped on the sports betting bandwagon since the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (Babsa) in 2018. The law had previously imposed a virtual federal ban on nearly all sports betting outside of Nevada.
MLB It has current deals with DraftKings and FanDuel as the league’s official sports betting partners.
Manfred sees betting as a way to engage more with fans. This year’s new rules to speed up play and add more goals have already paid off this season with increased attendance across the league.
The commissioner believes that sports betting engagement, including the eventual ability to bet on screen through streaming, augments these efforts.
“From day one, we had two ideas when it came to sports betting,” Manfred said on the podcast she hosted. New York Post Andrew Marchand and Sports Business Journal John Aurand. “No. 1, we thought the primary benefit of sports betting for us was to engage fans. Deeper, more consistent engagement with fans.
“Secondly, we are a family product. We have tried to be careful about the concept of ‘over-gambling’ – excessive gambling in many places in this sport. We think we have struck a balance where we get some of the engagement boost without creating the potential to alienate the family audience.”
The future of betting is on screen
the MLB It wouldn’t be the first sports entity to offer on-screen betting. The horse racing industry has offered this type of betting for several years in some states including through TVG The network, now known as FanDuel TV.
DAZN The network also offered live on-screen betting. Other leagues have shown interest and some online platforms are moving in this direction. the NFL Announced a partnership With Genius Sports this week on the new BetVision platform.
Gaming companies can provide the service and bettors can view it NFL Games on BetVision while betting. Caesars Sportsbook and Fanatics have already joined forces to offer the service. MLB It seems to be heading in a similar direction.
“I think our goal overall is to get as close as possible to allowing our fans to watch on whatever platform they want to watch,” Manfred said.
