The biggest bit of sporting news this week was that legendary NFL franchise, The Raiders, will be relocating from Oakland to Las Vegas, who is strengthening its roster of professional sports team after the inclusion of NHL's Las Vegas Golden Knights.
Raiders' new home will be a $1.8 billion stadium that is currently under construction at Interstate 15 and Russel Road. It is going to be a state-of-the-art architectural marvel and also a potential hub for big business. Furthermore, one major Vegas casino name has managed to snap it up before everyone else does.
Caesars Entertainment Corp has become Las Vegas Raiders' first marketing partner and as such it will have the privilege of branding the stadium - future home of Raiders. The company will make use of its signature media kits and logos – but they're planning to take things much further than that.
Everything in correlation with Raiders will be branded by Caesars, including cheerleaders as well: the drop-off zone, entrance zone and there will be plenty of media, radio and digital assets to go about, but one major novelty could also be allowed – full-fledged gambling at the venue, which by current restrictions, is not permitted.
Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) will consider certain forms of gambling to be allowed inside the Las Vegas Raiders 65,000 seat stadium which will not be open until 2020.
According to the Act from 2016, no sports venues should permit any gambling to take place inside their premises. However, with sports betting taking the U.S. by storm, which is also getting overwhelmingly good reception among the people, NGCB will consider certain changes to this Act.
The regulator’s Chair, Becky Harris, stated that “should proposals be brought forward with regard to gambling in the stadium, we'll assess them on their merits”.
Caesars' early deal with Las Vegas Raiders (who will begin their maiden NFL season in this city in 2020 when the stadium is finished) means they will enjoy the status of “first founding partner”...
...this will give enable them to attain commanding presence in the stadium, including a private suite for their premium customers, clients and VIP members.
The Caesars-Raiders deal, as well as the NGCB's hinting at allowing gambling inside the stadium, beckons the question of “what type of gambling we are talking about”. One probable option is that this will apply to mobile gambling apps which have been in huge demand since the historic PASPA repeal as developers all across the states are racing towards putting their product on the market.
In case of New Jersey, more sports wagers are made over the phone devices than land-based sportsbooks.
However, NFL represents just one of the professional leagues (unlike NHL and NBA) that was not concerned about liberalization of sports betting, demanding that all integrity fees are included within the legal framework of every state's sports betting legislature. Will their representatives strongly object to any form of gambling taking place inside one of their stadiums?
What do you think about the prospect of gambling during NFL games? Are you pro or against? Tell us about it in the comment section below!
Source:
“Betting ban at Las Vegas Raiders Stadium may be due for revisiting”, Richard N. Velotta, reviewjournal.com, November 3rd, 2018.