One of the NFL’s most successful franchises is gearing up to have a strong group of sports betting partnerships at their stadium. On Thursday, the Denver Broncos made BetMGM the latest partner in their portfolio from the gambling industry.
The sweet spot of the deal will be the first-ever in-stadium sports betting lounge for a team in the NFL. This was a deal that was very important to both sides.
“As we think about the sports market in Colorado, the first team we think of is the Broncos,” BetMGM chief marketing officer Matt Prevost said. “Their heritage and success on and off the field occupies a unique place in the Colorado market.”
How Many NFL Teams Have Betting Partners?
The team has now signed as many sports betting partners this month – three – as it has in Super Bowl titles in its history. In comparison, no other NFL team has signed a deal like this yet.
“We benefited from timing, and Colorado was an early-mover as a state,” Broncos chief commercial officer Mac Freeman said.
“We were on top of the topic and engaging with a lot of folks that were in the space. When Colorado went live (on May 1), we were in position to have an idea of what we wanted to do and what we were looking for.”
Prevost explained that the discussions were “off and on” since earlier in the year, but things picked up more steam in the last month.
“I think the Broncos recognize that sports betting is going to be a big part of the landscape in Colorado, and we, like the Broncos, think responsible sports betting is a way to increase fan engagement and deliver a terrific experience to their customers and our customers,” Prevost said.
Who are the Denver Broncos Betting Partners?
The other partners, FanDuel and Betfred USA, each brings plenty to the table. FanDuel is one of the most recognized names in the world, with a variety of offerings, while Betfred has great hospitality options in the plans.
“BetMGM covers all the spaces that we didn’t necessarily have with our first two partnerships,” Freeman said. “MGM brings a really diverse and broad portfolio to the table. We’re thrilled with the way it worked out.”
The Broncos have been looking for betting partners since last November when Proposition DD was allowed to legalize sports betting. Over the last month, numerous other NFL franchises have even reached out to the Broncos about the details of the process of acquiring betting partners.
“It’s kind of a crazy landscape,” said Prevost. “A lot of teams are in states that aren’t active (in legalized sports betting), so they’re not in position to do these deals, and a lot of teams maybe got working on the process a little later. What we did strategically will probably be adopted by a lot of teams.”
The start of the NFL season will be huge for Colorado to start seeing the benefits of sports betting. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, there has not been a lot of offerings on the board. If all goes according to plan, that will change soon.
