For sports fans across the US, watching pro and college players on the football field over Thanksgiving weekend is as traditional as eating Turkey and meeting with family. The week that incorporates Thanksgiving weekend is always the busiest time of the year for bookmakers, and this year even more so. For the first time, in many states, sports bettors were able to place bets legally on their favorite teams, following the US Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in May, when the court ruled that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) was in violation of the US constitution. This decision led to a rush to legalize sports betting and establish single-game wagering rules by individual states.
Several states were lucky enough to meet the Thanksgiving betting boom and start counting the revenue from the wagering hysteria that traditionally takes place on this weekend. Many of these states set up legislative frameworks before the Supreme Court ruling, so that when the decision came, it was just a matter of turning on the legislative faucets, so to speak. Delaware, New Jersey, Mississippi, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Mexico all offered legal and regulated sports betting for the first time.
The results of this change to US sports betting rules was seen instantly across the board. TV ratings for Monday night’s game were the highest they have been in more than four years. The National Football League also celebrated after rather sluggish popularity ratings in the past few years. Analysts have put this down to the fact that since more Americans are betting on the games in a legal fashion, it is only natural that more will be interested in watching the games and following scores.
According to Jay Ginsbach who writes for Forbes: “Fans who bet on the games are more engaged and having some action or a skin in the game also attracts more viewers. The biggest growth segment of the sports betting industry is in-game wagering, where you can bet on selected plays and propositions during the course of a game. And you can do it from a mobile device in the palm of your hand — legally, in many more states in the years ahead.”
It’s not only the NFL celebrating these numbers. All major sports leagues in the US have a reason to give thanks this season, including the NBA and NHL.
