NFL team’s partnerships with the sports betting industry have grown significantly over the past year, according to data from SponsorUnited.
As part of an NFL Marketing Partnerships Report, SponsorUnited has stated that sports wagering has become a key revenue driver for NFL teams, with income from this vertical increasing by 40% in 2022 compared to the previous year.
The sports and entertainment intelligence platform noted that sports betting and gaming deals have quadrupled between 2019 (8 brands) and 2022 (32 brands), adding that more than 25 NFL teams now have at least one sports wagering or daily fantasy sports sponsor.
Several sports betting and gaming operators have partnerships with multiple NFL teams, including FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars Entertainment, BetMGM, Betfred, PointsBet, Unibet, and WynnBET.
BetMGM (Arizona Cardinals) and Fanatics (Washington Commanders) also operate sportsbook locations in NFL stadiums or close to the team which they have a partnership with.
However, it’s important to remember that while sports betting and gaming deals have quadrupled between 2019 and 2022, several US states have also legalized sports wagering during that same period – including large NFL markets such as New York, Maryland, and Ohio in the past 18 months – which would have encouraged these deals to take place.
Although this report focused on NFL teams, the league itself also has partnerships with several sportsbooks. Recently, the NFL also began a deal with Genius Sports to provide a ‘Watch & Bet’ video streaming service on Caesars Sportsbook.
While it’s currently unclear how many more states will regulate sports betting in 2023, more partnerships between sportsbooks and NFL teams could occur this year in line with betting interest.
Earlier this week, the American Gaming Association revealed that it is projecting around 20% of American adults to place a bet on the Super Bowl this weekend.
