Nowadays, it’s not uncommon for the average American sports fan to place bets in support of their favorite sports teams, regardless of the league.
According to insights from Marketplace.org, sports betting in the US is looking to continue its climb as organizations unite to promote responsible and legal gambling. Meanwhile, data from the American Gaming Association (AGA) indicates that Americans wagered nearly $120 billion on sports in 2023. This is a 28% growth from the year before and includes major leagues like the NBA, NFL, and MLB. Moreover, even NBA draft picks are subject to predictions and speculations, where the NBA capitalizes on multiple days of live draft coverage to keep the audience’s attention.
To continue its development, seven of the largest US sportsbooks, including FanDuel and DraftKings, are now launching a trade group to promote responsible gaming. Responsible Online Gaming Association members will share best practices and the customers who have been banned from their platforms for problematic betting to help improve the industry moving forward.
Aside from driving significant amounts of revenue, the rise of sports betting in the US is also crucial for promoting fan engagement, as people are more likely to watch games to the end to see if their bets are successful. Another prominent element of sports betting that has penetrated the industry in recent years is the rise of cryptocurrency.
For many sports bettors, crypto betting provides a more secure and anonymous way of placing their bets and cashing out potential winnings. So with that in mind, below, we’ll take a closer look at the relationships between the NBA, betting, crypto, and technology and how each element is impacting the NBA betting market.
Crypto And NBA Betting
As discussed above, the NBA is one of the major sports leagues Americans enjoy betting on. Earlier this year, the American Gaming Association reported that the NBA and MLB would get a $1.7 billion revenue increase from legal sports betting. The AGA anticipates that legal sports betting will boost profits for the four major pro leagues by $4.2 billion. The AGA also notes that legal sports betting can help create opportunities for state and local economies, including generating tax revenue and jobs while supporting small businesses across the country.
Nowadays, NBA betting has become increasingly accessible thanks to an array of innovative betting companies. Online betting platform Thunderpick offers NBA betting lines and odds for pre-match and live in-play betting markets. Platforms like Thunderpick cover all upcoming NBA events across various betting markets, including Match Winner, Handicaps, and Totals. At the same time, Thunderpick also champions crypto sports betting as a safe and secure alternative to betting with fiat currency.
In fact, using crypto to bet on NBA games has become a popular pastime for many sports fans. Most recently, rapper Drake placed a substantial bet in Bitcoin on the NBA Finals. Unfortunately, his $500,000 wager on the Dallas Mavericks winning the NBA championship failed to follow through. Coincidentally, Drake also lost $500,000 when he bet on the Edmonton Oilers to win the Stanley Cup Finals.
Tech And Sports Gambling
Aside from third-party bookmakers and betting platforms offering NBA betting opportunities, the NBA itself has made moves to support and promote responsible gambling. Earlier this year, the organization announced a new live betting feature in its NBA League Pass app. The app will now offer fans the option to bet on games in real-time. Fans can also track betting odds in-game and bet on them through the NBA’s sports gambling partners. The option is currently available only on mobile, but there may be plans for other platforms in the future.
At the same time, many sports-based platforms like SportsRadar and Stats Perform use digital technologies to provide advanced data analytics and real-time statistics. This information is crucial for hardcore NBA fans to determine the odds of their favorite teams, as well as bettors looking to make more informed decisions.
SportsRadar is the NBA’s official data provider, ensuring accurate and real-time updates.
NBA And Crypto Deals
Finally, it’s also important to note that the NBA is just as friendly towards cryptocurrency as it is towards responsible gambling. This CNBC piece highlights the role crypto companies played in fueling NBA sponsorships in the 2021-22 season, generating a record $1.6 billion in revenue in said year. This was a 13% increase from the $1.4 billion in the 2020-21 season. Crypto-based sponsorship deals can range from arena-naming rights to companies putting their names or logos on players’ jerseys. In 2022, crypto trading platform Coinbase signed an agreement with the league worth $192 million.
As of 2022, the NBA ranks third in sponsorship revenue among the big four sports leagues, following the NFL at nearly $2 billion and the MLB at $1.7 billion. Meanwhile, specific NBA teams are also embracing the crypto growth. In the same year, the Los Angeles Lakers signed a 20-year arena-naming rights contract worth $700 million with Crypto.com.
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Featured Image: Adam Hagy/NBAE via Getty Images
