- The NHL currently has partnerships with three different sports betting operators.
- The NHL plans to reveal their player-and-puck tracking system next season.
- Injury information for NHL players will not be disclosed to sportsbooks.
NEW YORK – NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has seemed to take a bit of a different approach to the spread of sports betting in the US. While the NBA and MLB seem to fight for royalties together, the NHL has instead chosen to partner with the sports betting providers themselves.
The Commissioner spoke on this strategy during the Leaders Sports Business Summit.
“Unless you have a relationship and are jointly seeking legislation, there’s no shot of legislation getting passed,” said Bettman. “We’ve embraced the industry cooperatively.”
The NHL now has partnerships with three different sports betting companies. Those companies include MGM Resorts, FanDuel, and most recently William Hill.
No state that has legalized sports betting has included any payment to the professional sports leagues in which people are betting on. Sports leagues have often claimed that they would provide official league data to the state in exchange for a royalty, but that has been unsuccessful so far.
Instead, states such as Iowa and Indiana have legal sports betting and have given much of the power over it to their gaming facilities and to online wagering companies.
During the Summit, Bettman argued that official league data could instead be traded with the books themselves. The NHL’s version of this would be their player-and-puck tracking system which is expected to launch at some point next season.
Most information generated from this initiative will be available to the public after the games are over. But, sportsbooks may be able to use this data in order to better serve their live betting odds. In order to get real-time data, they will have to sign a licensing deal with the NHL.
One piece of crucial information that the NHL will retain is their injury reports.
“We are well known for our teams not disclosing injuries,” said Bettman. “That’s not something we’re going to change.”
Other leagues release official injury reports to the public. Those help to guide bettors when making player prop bets or even bets that involve the team. Their sports betting partners have not yet spoken on this matter.
Bettman also spoke on the potential that legal NHL betting would have for local markets with an NHL team. The Commissioner highlighted that betting on Hockey in Nevada rose 60% the first year that the Golden Knights began playing in Las Vegas and rose 40% in their following season.
The relationship between sports betting companies and professional sports leagues seems almost unavoidable. Bettman sees this an opportunity to partner up for any future states that plan on legalizing the activity so that the NHL can get some piece of the action before it’s too late.
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News tags: NHL | sports betting
– In his career, Hasan has worked both local and state government positions—including the Attorney General’s Office in Florida. On top of being familiar with the legislative process, he has also been researching and writing on the legality of sports betting across the US. Outside of work you’ll most likely find him producing or playing music, playing sports, or working on creative writing projects. You’ll also catch him at Doak Campbell Stadium cheering on the Noles.
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