Tag Archives: Sports betting

Goin’ mobile in Vegas Seven

May 5, 2011 3:52 pm

This Thursday I have a new Green Felt Journal in Vegas Seven. It’s about the implications of William Hill’s growing footprint in Nevada sports betting, which I think is noteworthy:

With all of the sound and fury stirred up by the recent “Black Friday” indictments of three online poker operators, some major news that’s bringing Nevada a bit further into the future and a bit closer to the mainstream of sports betting in the rest of the world has gone largely unheralded.Last month, William Hill, a London-based bookmaking giant that claims 25 percent of the competitive market in the British Isles announced plans to acquire both American Wagering—the owner of Leroy’s, a chain of 53 sports books, 19 betting kiosks, and a Lovelock casino—and Club Cal Neva, a betting chain with more than two dozen outlets, primarily in Northern Nevada. This week, William Hill also bought Brandywine Bookmaking, parent of Lucky’s race and sports books.

via Goin’ mobile | Vegas Seven.

I think there’s a real battle brewing between Cantor and Lucky’s/Leroy’s/Club Cal Neva/William Hill for control of the Las Vegas sports book market.

Both companies have visions for how to increase the size of that market, but they’re a little different. Even though Leroy’s is getting its smartphone/tablet apps out first, from what I’ve seen it’s a much more traditional company in terms of approach and product than Cantor’s-Cantor’s CEO Lee Amiatis doesn’t even like the term “sports betting,” preferring “sports trading,” showing his company’s history in the financial markets.

Whoever “wins” (and I’d say there’s plenty of room in the market for both companies and approaches), the way Nevadans bet on sports is going to change over the next year.

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The Big Finish in Vegas Seven

March 31, 2011 12:36 pm

It’s Thursday, so there’s a new Vegas Seven out. I’ve got two pieces in this one. Here’s the first, about betting on the Final Four:

March might be mad, but it’s also pretty lucrative for Las Vegas sports books. Most of the big casinos make betting on the NCAA men’s basketball tournament the centerpiece of a gambling vacation for the guys (and about 95 percent of them are guys—there’s still a heavy masculine slant to the party). The first extended weekend, in which 48 games are played over four days, is the busiest for most Nevada sports books. But Final Four weekend’s no slouch, either.

via The Big Finish | Vegas Seven.

Very frenetic stuff.

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Podcast w/ Lee Amaitis is up

February 23, 2011 12:58 pm

At the opening of the Tropicana’s new Cantor Gaming-run sports book, I had a very interesting conversation with Cantor Gaming President and CEO Lee Amaitis. It was so interesting that I thought I should share it with everyone. So we made an appointment for a sit-down interview, and here it is.

UNLV Gaming Podcast #27
Lee Amaitis, President and CEO, Cantor Gaming
In this interview with CGR Director David G. Schwartz, Amaitis gives a perspective on his career and discusses the current state of sports trading, as well as sharing his thoughts on the future.

Listen to the audio file (mp3)

Cantor Gaming

More UNLV Gaming Podcasts

Amaitis says some intriguing things about where sports betting is heading. It’s particularly noteworthy that he avoids the term “sports betting” and refers to “sports trading,” suggesting a completely different model for the activity. If you’re interested in where gaming and technology are heading in the very near future, you’ve got to listen to this one.

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2011 Super Bowl Breakdown

February 8, 2011 9:17 am

The Nevada Gaming Control Board has released the unaudited figures for this year’s Super Bowl, and in spite of early reports that the books took a beating, they actually came out slightly ahead. Here’s a quote from the press release:

THE GAMING CONTROL BOARD RELEASED FIGURES TODAY SHOWING THAT $87.5 MILLION WAS WAGERED IN NEVADA’S 183 SPORTS BOOKS ON THIS YEAR’S SUPER BOWL.

GAMING CONTROL BOARD CHAIRMAN MARK LIPPARELLI SAID, “UNAUDITED FIGURES SHOW A SPORTS BOOK WIN OF $724,176 WAS RECORDED ON WAGERS TOTALING $87,491,098. THIS RESULTED IN A HOLD PERCENTAGE OF 0.83%.”

The release also has a table indicated the results for the past ten Super Bowls:
superbowlbets

The low hold, as you can see, is a bit of an anomaly. But even if the books had lost money, the casinos would have made money over the weekend, thanks to more action in the casino, even if you discount the bump from the Chinese New Year.

I wonder what role in-running bets had on keeping the win up–with more betting during the game, there were more decisions, which theoretically should get a hold percentage closer to 5.45% over time.

The real story, I think, is that the handle is trending up again. That’s a sign that people are gambling more money, which in the end will be good for Nevada gaming.

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BlackBerry to the future in the Las Vegas Business Press

January 11, 2011 3:50 pm

My latest piece in the Las Vegas Business Press takes a look at why Leroy’s Blackberry sports-betting application is a big deal:

The year is still young, but 2011 has already been groundbreaking for Nevada’s gaming industry. The Gaming Control Board approved an application that lets players make bets from their own mobile devices, pointing the way to a future in which gambling will go mobile.

via Las Vegas Business Press :: David G. Schwartz : BlackBerry to the future: Gaming takes step ahead.

At its core, the app is just old-fashioned account wagering updated for mobile devices, with a raft of security and geo-location protocols that ensure a) the data is secure and b)the person making the bet is in Nevada.

Anyone can download the app, whether you’re a Nevada resident or not, but you have to physically be within the state to place bets. In addition, you have to open your account at a Leroy’s sportsbook, and if you are lucky enough to win, you either pick your winnings up at one, or arrange for a wire transfer.

This is really where the future of sports betting is going to be. With people using apps for an increasing number of information and commercial services, it’s only logical that they be able to bet on sports with one.

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Football’s local impact in Vegas Seven, and an award

September 30, 2010 6:16 am

It’s Green Felt Journal time again. This week, I talk about the impact of football on Las Vegas in Vegas Seven:

Even though Las Vegas doesn’t have an NFL team, football is a popular pastime in the city, and one that has a huge economic impact on the area.Yes, there are the Locomotives of the United Football League and the UNLV Rebels, but football’s real impact here isn’t felt on the field or in the stands—it’s in the sports books and bars of the Valley.

via Even with no NFL team, Vegas scores big during football season | Vegas Seven.

I decided to write this after I did a little poking around to check on some of the claims of “economic impact of a new arena” proponents. Even without a team, it’s clear that football generates a lot of economic activity in the area.

This is also as good a time as any to announce that I’m now officially an award-winning columnist. The Nevada Press Association has honored me with second place in the “Best Local Non-staff Column” category. Here’s the description:

2. David G. Schwartz, Vegas Seven
“Schwartz’s column is everything you’d expect a column on the gaming industry not to be — accessible, well-sourced, pertinent and insightful. ‘Real baccarat players like their privacy.’”

I still can’t figure out whether that’s a back-handed complement or not, but I’ll take it.

Congratulations also to Vegas Seven stablemate Michael Green, who beat me out for the top spot in the category.

And fellow gaming writer David McKee took home not one, but two awards for his work for another Las Vegas weekly paper.

You can read about all of the award-winners here.

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Madder, leaner, Vegas

April 1, 2010 11:02 am

Since it’s Thursday, I’ve got a new Green Felt Journal for you to read in Vegas Seven magazine. This week, I talk about March Madness on the Strip:

The basketball-mad crowd covers all ages, from cigar-chomping sharp bettors in their 60s to still-in-school rowdies wearing their college colors. It skews young, however, with 20- to 30-somethings dominating in most casinos. The audience in most sports books is about 97 percent male.

The NCAA Tournament, particularly the first weekend, has become an unofficial cross-country college reunion getaway. Although many fans have moved on from the frat house or dorm television lounge and might live thousands of miles apart, they return to Las Vegas in groups of varying sizes each spring to watch the games, drink beer and enjoy what’s become the ultimate guy trip.

The tournament has become one of the biggest draws in town. While it’s impossible to directly assess its total economic impact (no one fills out a survey saying they came to town for the games), it’s acknowledged as a huge draw.

via March Madness offers peek at leaner Vegas vacation | Vegas Seven.

I used the word “crowd” three times in the story, and might have used it more, because gathering information for this story really brought to mind Charles Mackay’s Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds. Not that I’m saying that the guys betting on March Madness are deluded, but it is March “Madness,” and there are big crowds, so I guess my brain filled in the blanks.

And there was something very compelling, but very exhausting, about the atmosphere in the books. I can’t see how anyone has enough energy to do anything but crash for 12 hours, beer and other depressants of choice notwithstanding, after a day of March Madness Vegas action. It must be all the oxygen they pump into the casino.

That last sentence, my friends, is the closest I’m getting to an April Fool’s joke this year.

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Someone in the news looks at the numbers

February 24, 2010 9:41 am

Often, folks in the media accept whatever number’s thrown at them when gambling’s concerned. If someone says a study claims that governments will make billions a year legalizing online gambling, it’s accepted without question.

But Josh McMahon of New Jersey News Room actually did some research when it comes to one net gaming proposal:

What I do object to, however, is the ballooning of expectations.Lesniak and others claim New Jersey can collect about $100 million a year from sports betting but their numbers don't add up.I can't follow his math. I challenged him on this last year but never heard from him. He didn't produce the numbers.Here's why I'm skeptical. Last year all 266 Nevada casinos “won” a total of $136.3 million from sports betting. That's what the casinos had after they paid off the winners.

via The over/under of Lesniak’s sports gambling plan | Commentary | NewJerseyNewsroom.com — Your State. Your News..

It’s good to see people actually look at the numbers to see if they make sense.

One quibble–in the article, McMahon claims that Nevada casinos had $11.5 billion in gross gaming revenue “last year.” The actual total is $10.3 billion for 2009, and $11.6 billion for 2008. I don’t usually go out of my way to correct other people, but since we’re talking numbers and accuracy, I figure it’s fair play. Although to be fair to McMahon, the sports betting total for 2008 was also about $136 million, so it would be easy to confuse the two years.

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Sayre says sports betting to grow

November 16, 2009 2:05 pm

Here’s the word from a member of Nevada’s Gaming Control Board: look for competition in legal sports betting. From the LV Sun:

Nevada will face competition for race and sports books, a state gaming regulator predicts.“The most pent-up demand is for sports wagering,” state Gaming Control Board member Randall Sayre told more than 60 lawyers at the 2009 Gaming Law Conference sponsored by the State Bar of Nevada.Sayre made his remarks Nov. 6 at the Rio. The event included a keynote presentation by American Gaming Association President and CEO Frank Fahrenkopf and several panels on legal and regulatory issues in the gaming industry.Sayre said as more states struggle to develop revenue sources, some will look to race and sports books as a solution.“It’s about competition, competition and more competition,” Sayre said in response to a question about which issues will be prominent in the future. “There will be intense revenue pressures, more than we’ve ever seen before. The profound impact of competition on the state is not going to go away.”Nevada, the only state to offer legal wagering on sports, nearly got its first competition this year when Delaware proposed allowing sports bets at racinos. The move was blocked by 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals when the National Football League, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association and NCAA filed a motion in opposition.Delaware was one of four states — the others are Oregon, Montana and New Jersey — that were exempt from legislation banning sports wagering in the United States, one of the last bills sponsored by former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley, who played professional basketball before getting into politics.The four states had an exemption because they had lottery games tied to professional football results.Sports betting accounts for just 1 percent of the total gaming win in Nevada every year.

via Get ready for sports book competition, regulator says – Las Vegas Sun.

Before I opine, I’d like to point out that under PASPA New Jersey is not allowed to offer sports betting. That’s why NJ state senator Ray Lesniak is working to challenge PASPA.

Also, as the article notes, Delaware is not able to offer straight-up point spread betting on single games, thanks to the 3rd Circuit Court decision.

But where there’s a political will there’s usually a legal way, and the large illegal sports betting market is too tempting a target for state governments to hold off for long. I’d look for continued challenges to PASPA that will eventually succeed.

If Nevadans should learn one thing from the history of gambling, it’s that they shouldn’t be complacent or secure with a legal monopoly on sports betting. Once the casino monopoly seemed even more secure, and that’s long gone.

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Net gambling rundown

October 22, 2009 10:26 am

This piece in the LA Times mentions the current pressure to legalize some forms of Internet gambling, with a hint of the real story:

Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) have both introduced bills in Congress to lift a federal ban on much online play and clarify the law, which is even murkier than it is for physical casinos, if that's possible. Their goals include taking a piece of the action for the U.S. Treasury, on the political principle that sins always seem less deadly when there's money to be squeezed from them. The consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers estimated in 2007 that legalization could yield as much as $43 billion in tax revenue over 10 years if it includes sports betting, $34 billion even if it doesn't.

Another impetus is that new Federal Reserve and Treasury Department rules requiring banks and other financial institutions to block gambling transfers will go into effect Dec. 1, and the banks are screaming bloody murder about the added regulatory burden.

Internet gambling is one of those issues that shines a light on the distribution of juice in Washington.

The repeal bills delight casino companies such as Harrah’s Entertainment, which is hankering to expand its thriving poker business online and has spent about $1 million this year alone to lobby Congress for legalization. But they also leave intact a ban on Internet sports betting, which pleases outfits like the National Football League, no slouch in the Washington lobbying game.

via Calling America’s bluff on Internet gambling — latimes.com.

Here are few things to think about. I’ve read a lot about what Harrah’s thinks, what the Poker Players Alliance thinks, and what the NFL thinks. How about what the American people think? If you allow people to gamble online in one form, is there really any logical reason not to let them bet on anything they want? It’s like saying you can buy books but not DVDs online.

Naturally, if a form of gambling is completely banned, like betting on dog-fighting, you wouldn’t be able to offer that. Outside of that restriction, I don’t see the legal or ethical rationale behind championing poker at the expense of sports betting.

In fact, the reason is right up there in the last paragraph that I quoted–there is big money behind poker, and not much against, and big money against sports betting. Again, the actual desires of the people don’t seem to come into play. This isn’t good, because either way you look at it a populace eager to gamble is being held hostage to special interests, or a pernicious new form of gambling is about to be foisted on an unwilling nation.

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