Professional sports organizations such as the National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball have long prohibited alcohol companies from buying advertising in stadiums and arenas where it could be seen on television, honoring efforts to curb drunk driving. Ta.
But in 2009, in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression, the same league found itself in a scramble for money as its biggest sponsors, including automakers and banks, cut back on marketing. Suddenly, they started signing multi-million dollar contracts with companies that made rum, tequila, vodka, and other hard liquors, and their ads were displayed for everyone to see.
This was a demonstration of how justifications can change overnight, especially when money is involved. Sports broke last week when Miriam Adelson and her trust sold $2 billion worth of stock in casino operator Sands Corporation to acquire a professional sports team, and that team turned out to be the Dallas Mavericks. The world remembered this. (League board approval is required before the acquisition becomes official.)
“The Adelson and Dumont families are honored to have the opportunity to become stewards of this great franchise,” the families said in a statement.
For decades, most major professional leagues kept their gaming worlds largely independent. The rule prohibits players, umpires, and owners from gambling on sports in order to insulate game results from any signs of rigging, a stance that dates back at least a century to the famous Black Sox scandal of 1919. .
Similarly, some leagues prohibit owners from holding stock in the casino. In one example, Dan Rooney, principal owner of the National Football League’s Pittsburgh Steelers, had to buy out his brother’s stake in the team because his brother owned racetracks in New York and Florida. did not become. The NBA has no such rules, and some owners have ties to casinos, including Tilman Fertitta, the current owner of the Houston Rockets.
“When gambling is freely allowed at sporting events, normal occurrences during games such as bad snaps, dropped passes, turnovers, penalties, and play calls inevitably lead to speculation, mistrust, and accusations of point-shaving and match-fixing. “It’s going to incite,” the NFL commissioner said. Roger Goodell said in 2012:
But the league’s previous approach seems odd now that dozens of states have legalized sports betting, which was once reserved for casino meccas like Las Vegas or through bookmakers. There are still restrictions on players, referees and owners who bet on their sports, but gambling has otherwise been accepted by the mainstream sports community.
They lifted restrictions on sportsbook advertising in casinos, stadiums and on television. Some stadiums have indoor sportsbooks, such as FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland, home of the NFL’s Washington Commanders. Sports betting companies now plaster their names on stadium signs, buy television commercials during games, including the Super Bowl, and run all sorts of promotions to attract new customers.
The leagues also pivoted their operations in Las Vegas, the home of sports betting that had been off-limits for years. Currently, the city is home to teams from the National Hockey League, Women’s National Basketball Association, and NFL. Last month, Major League Baseball owners unanimously approved allowing the Athletics to leave Oakland for Las Vegas. The NBA, which has hosted the All-Star Game, summer league, and new season tournaments in Las Vegas, could add an expansion team in Las Vegas in the coming years, which would mean every major professional sport has a team in the area. It turns out. He was once shunned by the league.
“As laws change, social mores change, and different companies and categories grow, leagues are constantly reevaluating their business,” said Mark Ganis, a consultant to numerous teams and leagues. he said. “That includes considering ownership rules, sponsorship and advertising.”
The NFL’s embrace of Las Vegas is perhaps the most surprising given the league’s conservative reputation. The Raiders received approval to move to the city in 2017. The league has hosted the Pro Bowl and college draft on The Strip. And in February, the league’s marquee event, the Super Bowl, will be held in Las Vegas, perhaps removing the last vestiges of distance between the two.
The league’s reassessment was both pragmatic and strategic. The biggest change came after the Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that laws banning sports betting in large parts of the country were unconstitutional. Dozens of states quickly approved legalizing sports betting, dwarfing spending in Las Vegas. The NFL currently allows owners to hold stock in casinos that do not offer sports betting, but restricts owners from holding more than 5% stock in casinos that allow sports betting. .
“Las Vegas is accepted not so much because of us, but because gambling is now everywhere,” said Michael Green, a historian at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. “Strip is just as legal as any other big business.”
At the same time, Las Vegas’ image as an oasis in the desert, with casinos and nightclubs under mob control, changed dramatically in the 1990s, when the Strip was transformed into an urban theme park where parents could take their children. Now, as many tourists come to see his U2 or Cirque du Soleil’s latest extravaganza at the Sphere as they do to visit the casino.
Additionally, although Las Vegas has a relatively small regional population of approximately 2.5 million people, it is a year-round tourist destination with approximately 40 million visitors, allowing it to support teams such as the Raiders and the NHL’s Golden Knights. Ta. Tourists who visit every year.
“Visiting Las Vegas exposes a whole new demographic to sports gambling,” said Jay Cornegay, vice president of racing and sportsbook operations at Westgate Resorts.
Green also pointed to the Smith Center for the Performing Arts and Mob Museum, which opened in 2012, as giving the city a sophistication it lacked. He recalled that just 20 years ago, the NFL blocked Las Vegas from buying ads during the Super Bowl, a decision that now seems outdated.
“Let me remind you,” he said, “where is the next Super Bowl?”
kevin draper Contributed to the report.