New Betting Opportunities in Colorado
Back in May 2019 the US Supreme Court made the historic decision to overturn the laws forbidding sports betting in the country. This followed a long and protracted campaign by certain states, led by New Jersey, to legalize the practice. It was by no means a unanimous decision, but the law was passed and, since then, individual states have been allowed to create their own legislation.
Several were involved in the first wave, naturally including New Jersey and Nevada, and various others have also followed suit. In the case of Colorado, it was in November 2019 that the people were allowed to vote on whether sports betting should be introduced. Following a narrow victory for those in favour, it became fully legal to bet on sports from the 1st of May 2020.
Under the new law, anyone over the age of 21 is now permitted to bet on virtually any sport, provided they do this via approved sports books. The industry is overseen by both the Colorado Gaming Control Commission and the Colorado Division of Gaming who, following the vote, quickly reviewed the legal requirements, taking their lead from other states in which sports betting was already legal.
Despite the reservations of some in the State Government about legalizing sports betting, the fact that in the first month alone it raised $96,000 in taxes is likely to have made them feel a little more well-disposed towards the practice.
A reversal of opinion
While the ban on betting was in force, much of the pressure to retain the status quo came from the major leagues including the NBA, MLB and NFL. The belief was that the honesty of the sports might be affected if betting became part of them, with players open to influence from interested parties. So, it’s ironic that it is some of the teams, especially from the latter, who are starting to take advantage of the new arrangement.
One team who are already doing very well out of the new arrangement is the Denver Broncos. This is thanks to the number of new partnerships that have been struck by the team with a number of sports betting companies operating in Colorado and who are hoping to raise their profile in the state still further.
One, two, three
The first of these was agreed in the middle of June with the FanDuel Group who joined up with the Broncos as their first official sports book and daily fantasy partner. As well as giving access to the huge Bronco’s fanbase, the deal also includes many opportunities for FanDuel to advertise on signage in and around the Empower Field at Mile High as well as via TV, radio and digital platforms. It also allows them free use of Bronco’s logos and trademarks which are normally closely guarded by copyright.
Hot on the heels of this first deal came one with the UK-based betting company, Betfred. As part of the arrangement, the company will be allowed to open the first ever sports betting lounge attached to an NFL stadium. This comes at the same time as the arrival of Betfred’s second sports book in the Saratoga Casino, Black Hawk.
Then, in July, they achieved the hat trick by coming together with the leisure and betting giant BetMGM. The agreement with them will involve the opening of a VIP BetMGM lounge within the stadium as well as the creation of a free-to-play game on the Denver Broncos’ 365 mobile app.
The bottom line
All three deals will generate some very welcome revenue for the team which will undoubtedly help with strengthening the squad to secure more players of the caliber of Christian Covington, essential if their 2020/21 season is going to be a good one with a chance of winning their fourth ever Superbowl title.
The benefits that all three deals deliver will also be very good news for other aspects of the team’s future and especially useful will be the link-up with BetMGM. This is set to open up a huge range of mutually beneficial promotions with Broncos fans being able to win exclusive VIP packages at MGM resorts all around the world with MGM customers also becoming eligible for Denver Broncos prizes.
Everybody wins
This is the sort of sponsorship deal that has already proved to be very successful in other sports around the world including the soccer Premier League in the UK. In fact, many of the clubs in the top tier rely heavily on support from sponsors who, in turn, benefit from the many corporate hospitality opportunities offered to their customers on match days.
Denver Broncos are also the very first team in the NFL to go into these kinds of arrangements. For example, the New York Jets and Giants do have links with FanDuel but not in such a formal way. The fact that all three deals are set to last for several seasons is also unique and demonstrates the commitment shown on both sides.
Looking to the future, it seems more than likely that many other allegiances will be formed of this kind and a number of NFL teams must surely be looking on with interest. And, with such a dedicated fanbase who will undoubtedly be keen to bet on their favourite team, this has to be very good news indeed for the Colorado state which stands to gain from the tax revenue it will raise.
