After a weekend of upsets, road wins, and a devastating injury to New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, no doubt NFL fans are already looking forward to Week 2. And when it comes to wagering, bettors are expected to get in on the action at record-setting numbers this season, according to a new survey by the American Gaming Association(AGA).
Football season is the biggest sport for Americans when it comes to betting. The AGA notes that the legal sports wagering landscape will see more people bet on this NFL season than at any time in history. That includes a record 46.6 million making an NFL bet this season. That represents 1% of all adults, up 3% from 2022 and 40% since 2020.
“The sustained interest in NFL wagering reflects the growth and continued maturation of legal sports betting across the country,” AGA President and CEO Bill Miller said. “Consumers clearly want legal sports betting options and understand the regulated industry’s foundational commitments to responsibility.”
A Growing Legal Sports Betting Landscape
The regulated online sports betting landscape has flourished since the Supreme Court cleared the way for more states to legalize in 2018. The U.S. now has 35 states offering sports wagering, along with Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico.
The AGA survey was conducted when that total was 32, an increase from 27 in 2021 and 19 in 2020. Similar to last year, 37% of NFL fans plan to bet on the league this season in some way.
Online and mobile wagering continues to grow at a rapid pace. The survey details that 23 million people plan to bet online, up 18% from 2021 and 104% from 2020. Live wagering is also up, with 10.6 million people expected to bet this NFL season at a casino property, up 2% from 2021 and 61% from 2020.
As more states have gone the legalization route, many bettors are also moving those wagers and parlays away from bookies and toward legal options. Just 13% of those who will make an NFL wager this year plan on using a bookie. That’s down from 15% in 2021 and 18% in 2020.
However, the number of bettors planning to use a bookie is 50% higher in states without legalized sports betting than those offering legal options. A majority of NFL bettors (68%) will make traditional sports bets either at a live casino, online, or with a bookie. Another 59% of NFL bettors said they will at least make a casual bet either with friends or as part of a pool, football squares, or fantasy fantasy contest, according to the report.
The annual survey was conducted online from Aug. 25-27, 2022, using a national sample of 2,210 American adults. The surveyors used data weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on age, educational attainment, gender, race, and region.
The AGA also gauged respondents as to their thoughts about the on-field results a bit as well. The group was asked if they were given $50 and asked to pick a Super Bowl winner, who would they pick? A plurality of would put that cash on: the Cowboys (7%), Chiefs (6%), Buccaneers (6%), Packers (5%), and Rams (5%).
North Carolina Casino Plan Still Up in the Air
Will North Carolina be getting four new casinos? That remains an open question as legislators continue wrangling over the possibility to add more gambling options to better compete with the growing Virginia gaming market.
Republican lawmakers hoped to approve a $30 billion budget plan this week, which was supposed to be completed by July. However, the impasse over additional gaming looks to be delaying the process.
“House Speaker Tim Moore (R) said he doesn’t have enough votes among Republicans to include plans for four new casinos in rural areas,” WUNC reports. “That’s something Senate Republicans wanted to add to the budget. Moore said he wants lawmakers to move ahead with the rest of the budget compromise that House and Senate Republicans have negotiated.”
That could then allow for legislators to vote on a singular gaming bill afterward. The issue appears to be dividing Republicans in the House and Senate, and Gov. Roy Cooper (D) has expressed his own opinion that the gaming bill should be decided on its own.
“I’ve said before that this is an issue that should be decided outside of the budget,” he said. “It shouldn’t be holding up a budget that can help move the state forward, that’s for sure.”
There appears to be a stalemate on the issue for now, but that could change in the coming days. Virginia has approved several casinos and some legislators are hoping to respond and keep more gambling dollars in-state.
