The Key Takeaways from the Bet on Sports America Conference

I was so impressed with the Bet on Sports America Conference that I wanted to follow up with 5 key takeaways for anyone that is working or interested in gaming, media and sports betting.

The advent of sports betting is in it's infancy. Sports betting has been legal in states outside of Nevada for just under 3 years. So many states have yet to legalize it. More over so many people are not aware that you can do it legally. Most sports books are populated by men. Hmm!!  Educate and Advertise. 

The pandemic has prompted an increase in online gaming and mobile sports betting. In October, Nevada books set a monthly record for betting handle at 659.6 million. 376.9 million was wager via mobile. Since we can't gather due to COVID the way to stay engaged with your players is remotely. Use all mediums available to you. Be consistent with your content and attempt to respond as close to real time as possible.

The partnerships between the media outlets and professional sports teams now have sports betting operators as a common denominator. Imagine if Google or Facebook enter the equation. They have the followers and could generate liquidity. Yahoo is involved and has it's own Sports division. Yahoo's sports betting platform is powered by BetMGM. 

Some of the professional teams that participated in the conference were the Sixers, Eagles, Flyers and New Jersey Devils.

The time is perfect for entrepreneurs and developers. If you can come up with an app or program that is easy to navigate and appeals to a gaming centric audience,  major corporations will find you. If someone comes up with a way to monetize Esports on a betting platform that makes gaming legislators and operators comfortable, they will be rich!  Nearly half a billion people play Esports or watch others play by streaming.

Don't be afraid to fail. If you're not taking risk on new technology and concepts now, when will you? I'll give you one concept. Meet with other industries that you can partner with. Make sure the partner aligns with your mission statement and core values. Don't sleep on small local businesses as a way of helping generate interest in what you are doing.  

This is the 4th conference that I have attended this year. 3 of them were after the pandemic shutdown in March. Add that to my expertise about casino operations along with my education regarding sports betting and you get a composite view of gaming  If you want more information or insight, we need to talk. In closing I want to quote Ben Franklin. "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest."

If you want a recap of the entire conference click here.

My website is  smartresponsiblegaming.com.  Follow me on Twitter and Facebook for conversations & Instagram for photos/videos.

This Week in Gaming Review

Gaming News from New Jersey took the spotlight with the announcement that Rush Street Gaming is entering the Garden State and accepting Online Wagers. Rush Street Interactive can now accept wagers from any patrons within the State of New Jersey. The website is playsugarhouse.com.

DraftKings paid millions of dollars this past week to make good on a promotional claim that a guaranteed jackpot would be in place. This is a good business move that shows credibility. FanDuel and Yahoo reported similar shortfalls though not as high as DraftKings.  It does not bode well for the marketing analysis that allow for an overestimation of the amount of entries. The next several weeks should have a lower guarantee based on the amount of interest from week 1.

MGM National Harbor is still on target for a 4th quarter opening. The Tables Games Team and the Food & Beverage Department are participating in community events in the DC area. Here are two photos that will give a glimpse of what to expect in the coming months.

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                                                          7 days until #G2E2016

Daily Fantasy Football Tips (3)

When selecting your team for Fantasy Football, make sure to look at the schedule of the games. You don't want to draft players that have the same bye weeks. That means you would have players on your roster that would not be available to you. You would be forced to pick someone up or play one of the guys  you consider a back up. Do a mock draft prior to selecting. Have a list of  the guys you want at each position and select base on the value of the player.

Antonio Brown

Ezekiel Elliott

If I am on the clock and I have a choice between Antonio Brown and Ezexiel Elliott, I am going Brown. While Elliott is projected to do well, the value associated with Brown exceeds the potential.

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                   Check out my app, Smart Responsible Gaming at thegamingguym.com/

                                                        26 days until #G2E2016

This Week in Gaming Review

The New York State Gaming Commission on Monday issued temporary permits to five fantasy sports operators, including industry giants DraftKings and FanDuel.  Governor Cuomo signed legislation to legalize Fantasy Sports Betting earlier this month. This is great for New York Football and Basketball fans.

Yahoo, Fantasy Draft and Draft also received temporary permits Monday. The companies were allowed to begin offering paid contests immediately. This is the 1st step toward sports betting. It will not be the last.

Glenn Straub. owner of the Revel Casino, now claims the property will have a soft Oct. 1 opening and be fully functioning by the end of December. The site is awaiting zoning and inspection by Atlantic City's L&I Department. There appears to be uncertainty about this.  Stay tuned for updates.

Governor Christie stated he is in favor of gaming expansion outside of Atlantic City. If this happens, casinos will be in North Jersey. This will not only affect AC but will hit some of  the Pennsylvania Casinos as well.  Mount Airy and Sands come to mind.  The proximity to the New Jersey border and the New York crowd are the respective reasons for both of these operators.

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                   Check out my app, Smart Responsible Gaming at thegamingguym.com/

                                                        27 days until #G2E2016

Daily Fantasy Football Tips (1)

For the next three weeks we will provide periodic tips for Daily Fantasy Football fans. This will benefit the fans of DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo. If you are selecting a team, look to stacking your team for the optimum results. Stacking is pairing the quarterback with a receiver or running back that play on the same team. This is a smart play because they are dependent on each other for production.

Pairing Matt Ryan with Julio Jones is an example.

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                   Check out my app, Smart Responsible Gaming at thegamingguym.com/

                                                        38 days until #G2E2016

Fantasy Sports is not Sports Betting: The Myth that came True

Nevada regulators handed down a ruling that Fantasy Sport sites can not operate in the Silver State

without a license. NBC News reported this. FanDuel and DraftKings can no longer take action in the state where gambling on almost anything is legal. This comes one week after the employee of   DraftKings  hit on the FanDuel site for $350,000. They both have institute a ban that prohibits employees from playing. Does the ban prevent the employees from sharing information with friends? Hmm!

 

FanDuel vs. DraftKings

 

 

                                                                

 

 

 

                                                               

 

                                                                  The Myth

The Trojan Horse is a tale from the Trojan War about the subterfuge that the Greeks used to enter the city of Troy and win the war. After a fruitless 10-year siege, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse  and hid a select force of men inside. The Greeks pretended to sail away, and the Trojans pulled the horse into their city as a victory trophy. That night the Greek force crept out of the horse and opened the gates for the rest of the Greek army, which had sailed back under cover of night. The Greeks entered and destroyed the city of Troy, decisively ending the war. A "Trojan Horse" has come to mean any trick or stratagem that causes a target to invite a foe into a securely protected bastion or place. This passage was provided courtesy of Wikipedia.

 

                                      So how did the myth come true?

 

Daily Sports Fantasy is the millennial Trojan Horse. The American operators pretend that it not gambling under the auspice of the 2006 Internet Gambling Enforcement  Act. 9 years later, the public is swayed by conventional wisdom  that this is the substitute for legal action on a game because it  is  technically not gambling. The selection of players from multiple teams does not constitute a "real" contest. The states are the protected place. We are allowing an unregulated form of wagering.

                                             

                                  Fantasy Sports = Sports Betting?  Hmmm!

 

The advertising dollars spent to entice players are outrageous. It does seem to be working. The incident that happen with the employee did not lower the interest in wagering on either site. It did alert the government to look at regulating Daily Fantasy Sports. I see partnerships that extend beyond licensing agreements and commercials. Casinos and Racetracks could connect with a site like Yahoo and DraftPot to offer Fantasy Sports. They have the facilities and are regulated. The sites have the software. The states could sell licenses for a fee. Everybody Wins. Hmmmm!

 

 

 

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Is Wagering on Fantasy Sports Gambling?

I saw this question about 10 days ago on LinkedIn. I did not read the response because I knew that I would weigh in on this. I like to maintain my objectivity when I write. I decided that I would compare betting on a football team like the Eagles to wagering on a fantasy team of my choosing.

When I bet the Eagles I take in consideration the line or points spread, homefield and weather. I

also chart the recent history between the Eagles and their opponent. If I can find more pluses to take the Birds then I put my money on Philly. If I can't ,then I don't wager on the game. If all roads and factors point to the opponent, I considered going the other way.

 

Some fans feel this is a form of blasphemy. No way can you bet against your team. A fan and a bettor are two different people. Fans are ride or die. Bettors are live to die another day. Read this paragraph again and you'll get it!

Now when I wagering on a fantasy team, I get to pick this imaginary lineup that would never play together against someone else's dream team of the week or day. I look at homefield, opponent and weather. I considered past individual performances. I also look at any significant injury. The injury variable is incorporated into the spread or line.

So the factors that go into picking a NFL team to wager on are the same as what you look for in betting on a fantasy team. So why is Fantasy a skill proposition and picking a team (Eagles) a gamble? The answer is not Sam Bradford.

The only difference is the point spread. My NFL team must win by more than the number designated or I will lose. My fantasy team just has to win. In a day fantasy league like DraftKings, FanDuel or Yahoo, my opponent and I may have some of the same players on our team.

Wanna Play??

Picking that secondary guy to go with your elite players will make the difference between winning and losing. There is something to be said for finding value at a price. Finding that value is a skill that is not based on luck. Skill ties more into percentages and analytics.

                                        Webster's definition of gambling is
: to play a game in which you can win or lose money or possessions : to bet money or other valuable things
: to risk losing (an amount of money) in a game or bet

: to risk losing (something valuable or important) in order to do or achieve something.

 

Wagering on Fantasy Sports sounds like gambling to me. And about 33 million other people.

 
           You can follow me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/GamingguyM and Facebook
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Fantasy Sports Explosion

I have been researching Fantasy Sports in preparation for the upcoming NFL season. I am not a baseball fan these days because my team has the worse record in either league. Our coach just resigned without being asked to. Who does that? 

So NFL it is. I plan to review each position with a top 5. I looking for input. Each week starting July 13, 8:00pm EST, I will share the view thru my social media outlets.  Join me and my co host Nkeshi Free on Twitter for #GTLivechat.  #GTLivechat is a conversation that is conducted via Twitter with followers around the world. What makes us unique is that we make picks and then get a poll of which players are the popular choices. We will select the positions individually and give the consensus of what you think.  Fun. Easy and Free.   For those who have a gaming interest, look at Fan Duel, DraftKings and Yahoo after you connect with us.

Then in August, we will look at the divisional and conference breakdown of the AFC and NFC. Since we have followers from different regions, we will balance what they see and compare it to the national media outlets like ESPN and Sports Illustrated. This will prepare you for the upcoming season. 

                                                         Now my question is ....




CASHING???

OR

TRASHING???

 

                                      Get the winners by being informed!
                                                                        

 

      You can follow me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/GamingguyM and Facebook
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