The Olympics: 5 Athletes to watch

 The Summer Games are days away and I want to bring you up to speed on some of the athletes you should be watching and rooting for over the next two weeks. The commitment to just get through the trials is a test.As I did research for this post, I found that many of the athletes do not have sponsors. This means that they have to subsidise their raining. This is inaddition to maintaining a job,attending school and balancing family obligations. So shout out to all of the athletes participating in the Summer Games in Paris,France for their persistence.

A'ja Wilson- A'ja is the star forward for the two time defending WNBA Champions Las Vegas Aces. She is currently leading her team in scoring and rebounding. She was the WNBA Finals MVP in 2023.A'ja is an outstanding defensive player as well. Her off the court reume is quite impressive. Wilson was on Time Magazines list as one of the top 100 Influential People in 2024. She wrote a best selling book entitled 'Dear Black Girls:How to be True to You'.The book made A'ja a New York Times best selling author in February 2024. She has major endorsement deals with Nike and Gatorade. This is her 2nd Olympics and she won a gold medal in 2020.

Hezly Rivera and Quincy Wilson-Hezly and Quincy are getting accolades for being two of the youngest members of the United States Olympic Team. Rivera is a member of the gymnastic team and trains at the World Olympics Gymnastics Academy where she is one the world's top gymnast.Wilson is taphenom and his track event is the 400 meters. He has set world record times in 3 occassions over the past 6 months.Wilson is the youngest male to ever make the USA Track and Field Olympic Team. Rivera and Wilson are 16 years of age.

Sha'Carri Richardson-Richardson is a comeback story that many everyday people can relate to. She qualified for the Summer Olympic Games in 2020 after breaking the collegiate record for 100 meters.At 19 years old, she was one of the 10 fastest women in history. Sha'carri tested positive for cannabis use following her US Trials, andwas inelgible to compete in the 2020 Games. She enterd a counseling progtam and accepted a one month period of inelgibility. She is in her own words,"I am not back,I am better."  Richardson has set records in the past three years at the World Championships and is expected to win the Gold Medal in the 100 Meters and as a member of the Women's 4x100 relay team.

Simone Biles- Biles is known for her epic performances during the Olympics Games. She has also become a public advocate on for mental health. After dominating the 2016 Rio Games,she limited her participation in 2020 as she dealt with mental health issues. She took time away from gymnastics but has returned to her 2016 level of dominance. Simone is considered one of the greatest gymnast of all time and made ESPN top pro athletes since 2000 list. She is ranked at number 7. Biles is a hero to so many people and whatever she does in this year's Games will not deter her legacy. 

Here is a clip of A'ja showing off her dance moves! Just another one of her talents,

Follow me on TikTok,Twitter and LinkedIn.

s 

Sports Betting-Inside the Numbers:Olympic Marketing

 The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games enaged with an audience of over 3 billion people according to an independent reasearch survey conducted by the IOC.This was via linear TV and digital platforms.Along with the Olympic broadcast partners using media and digital platforms,this led to over 28 billion views.Some of those views were done multiple times by the same people. This is still 139% increase over th 2016 Olympics Games in Rio.The power of streaming can not not be undereatimated and the 2024 Olympics should exceed the record set in 2020.

So how many of these people are your customers and how do you plan to involve them over the next 3 week? I have some suggestions that you can use to connect with your customers.

1. Provide periodic updates during the games with a personal touch. Have members of your team relay scores or video highlights.Share updates that the customer will find relevant. Have a team member that speak the same language as the customer or in the same age range, initiate the conversation.The patron will value the exchange and the team member solidify the relationship.
2. Plan a special that coincides with the Olympics Games. If you have brisk business in the morning,offer croissants.If your crowd is mid day to dinner time,steak fries will be appropriate. Both of these choices are synonymous with Paris ,France.
3. Allow your team members to wear t-shirts representing the country they are rooting for. This   acknowleges their lineage and the heritage of their ancestors.The employees will feel proud working for you during this two week period.  
4. Poll your clientele and gauge the interest in a watch party.If you get a response rate of 50%,you can realistically expect 30 to 60% of that group to come. Depending on your budget,you can entertain your guests with games of corn hole,Culture Tags and Five Card Draw Poker. Everyone has the opportunity to play with the top three people getting a prize ranking Gold,Silver and Bronze.
5. Sports Betting on the Olympics has some intrguing odds. The numbers range from prohibitive favoritess  to long shots.The USA Mens and Womens Basketball are the overwhelming favorites. The USA Soccer Team is a 25-1 long shot to win a gold medal.You can bet on what country will win the most gold medals and if the USA will win under 40.5 Gold Medals/ The odds are set at -130 for the under.China has the same under price but the number is set at 34.5. 

If you are not connecting your venue or brand with something related to the Olympics,there should be a serious look at how you are connecting with your customers.Just by celebrating the diversity of the participants will create a buzz. If you totally sleeping this opportunity then I know you should be conversing with me before NFL starts this fall!

    Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Sports Betting-Inside the Numbers: Olympics

 The 2024 Summer Olympics will start July 26th in Paris,France. 206 countries will be participating in approximately  329 events in 32 sports. According to Forbes Magazine, the United States is the oodds on favorite to win the most gold medals.The sponsors for this years Olympics includes Anheuser,Coca-Coca,Panasonic,Samsung and Visa.Each of these sponsors are  playing a specific role during the games.

Peacock,NBC streaming platform will broadcast the games along with the opening and closing round ceremonies.The IOC has committed to and inclusive media coverage during the games.I am looking foward to segments featuring the Womens Basketball and Soccer Teams.The social media coverage for the games will incude TikTok,Snapchat,Twitter,Facebook and Instagram. Expect players to post and share photos and comments on all of those mediums.

I expect A'ja Wilson  of the Las Vegas Aces and Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves to become international superstars because of their play in the games.Edwards is going to do this to someone and go viral on ESPN.

Follow me on LinkedIn and Twitter.

WNBA-Week Eight

 The news of thd week is centered around an injury to Minnesota Lynx Star Forward Napheesa Collier. Collier injured  her foot during a 78-63 loss to the Commecticut Sun.Collier was the MVP of the Cmmissioner's Cup Final,beating the New York Liberty. She is already a member of the USA Womens Olympic 5-5 team.The speculation has already started about who would replace her if she is out for an extended period and not able to go to the Oympic Games in Paris.

The alternates are Indiana Fever Guard Caitlin Clark and Sun Forward Brionna Jones. The popular choice would be Clark for obvious reasons. Much of the attention the WNBA has recieved this season was predicated on Clark.Jones is a perennial All Star and plays the same position as Collier. If thechoice is based on fit,Jones is the choice. If the dynamics of economics,marketing and media are involved,Clark gets the nod. Here's hoping Collier can participate and make this a mute point.

Two streaks ended on Friday as the Los Angeles Sparks defeated the Las Vegas Sun in overtime by a score of 98-93,The victory snapped a 6 game winning streak for the Aces. The Sparks ended a 8 game losing streak. The Sparks were led by Dearica Hamby with 28 points and 14 rebounds. A'ja Wilson led the Aces with 35points and 12 rebounds.

Chicago Sky's forward Angel Reese, continued her record shattering double-double streak.In the Sky's upset 88-84  road win over the Seattle Storm,Reese scored 27 points and had 10 rebounds in the victoty.Reese notched her 12th consecutive double-double,tying her with Candace Parkerfor the WNBA record. Reese holds the rookie record that was 7 straight prior to this season. Reese will be in the WNBA All Star Game on 7/20 in Phoenix,Arizona.

Here are the WNBA Weekend Selections. 

 Follow me on Twitter and Instahram.

After the NBA Finals: The Next 7 weeks.

The next 7 weeks is the slow period. Since we don't cover baseball until the latter part of the season,there is a lull.  So here is the agenda. We will do a #HisandHers chat featuring @kesiscuties and myself on Twitter. This feature will appear every Friday at 8PM. We will preview our conversation on Wednesday at the same time.

We will have #GTLivechat every Tuesday and Thursday at 7:30 until NFL football returns. We will cover OTAs,training camps, rookies and injuries. We will do a Hall of Fame Edition where we discuss the inductees as well as people we think should be in.

There will be Olympics Coverage from Rio De Janeiro on the popular events.

We also have casino news with interviews from the top executives and organizations.

We will have the best photos from Atlantic City and Las Vegas on Facebook & Instagram.

The readers can submit pictures as well via Twitter.

Don't forget to check out the website thegamingguym.com and my Smart Responsible Gaming app.

We are going to have fun this summer.

Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for updates!