The rate at which sports teams partner with online gambling platforms has increased in recent years. Gone are the days when many sports organizations refuse to partner with sportsbooks on moral grounds or societal pressure.
With online sports gambling legalized and regulated in many US states, Sports franchises are forming mutually beneficial relationships with sports betting companies. As a result, both parties are able to expand their frontiers and cut through fresh markets, increasing their brand awareness, customer and fan reach, and conversions. Undoubtedly, this is one of the reasons why online betting has become hugely popular with sports fans.
Most of these partnerships are cross-promotional, and it’s worth noting them. This article will focus on the top sports teams that partner with online gambling firms. Since there are many collaborations, we will address them on a league-by-league basis.
National Football League
The NFL is arguably the biggest league in American sports and has ongoing relationships with betting companies. The National Football League signed a contract with gambling giants Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel, making gambling brands the official sports betting partners of the NFL.
It also permitted BetMGM, WynnBet, PointsBet, and Fox Bet to promote their businesses during the games. Furthermore, in 2019, the NFL partnered with Caesars Entertainment in a three-year contract worth about $30 million annually. Thus, the league made the betting giant its official casino partner.
| NFL Team | Partner | Year Partnered |
| Seattle Seahawks | Snoqualmie Casino | 2008 |
| Dallas Cowboys | Winstar Casino | 2018 |
| New Orlean Saints | Harrah’s New Orleans | 2018 |
| New York Jets | BetMGM | 2018 |
| Baltimore Ravens | Horseshoe Casino Baltimore | 2018 |
| Arizona Cardinals | Gila River Hotels & Casinos | 2019 |
| Buffalo Bills | Seneca Resorts & Casinos | 2019 |
| Green Bay Packers | Oneida Casino | 2019 |
| Indianapolis Colts | PointsBet & Caesars, William | 2019 |
| Carolina Panthers | Harrah’s Cherokee Resort | 2019 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | Unibet, DraftKings, and Fox Bet | 2019, 2020, 2020 |
| Tennessee Titans | BetMGM | 2020 |
| Los Angeles Rams/Chargers | Pechanga Casino Resort | 2020 |
| Denver Broncos | FanDuel, BetMGM, and Betfair | 2020 |
| New York Giants | DraftKings | 2020 |
| Chicago Bears | PointsBet | 2020 |
| Detroit Lions | BetMGM | 2020 |
| Washington Football Team | FanDuel | 2021 |
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League’s first entrance into a deal with the gambling industry occurred in 2018, just a few months after MGM announced its partnership with the NBA. Following that transaction, the league partnered with other industry giants like William Hill, FanDuel, and PointsBet.
Notably, the partnership will progress for some years, and MGM is tagged the industry’s official betting partner on a non-exclusive term of operations.
It’s important to state that none of the NHL’s transactions with these companies is exclusive; instead, the league intends to partner with various other entities. While the league body is making several collaborations with betting platforms, most individual teams have also partnered with them.
NHL Teams | Partners | Year of Collaboration |
| Vegas Golden Knife | Pointsbet | 2018 |
| New Jersey Devils | FanDuel, William Hill, Unibet, Caesars | 2018, 2018, 2019, 2020 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | BetRivers | 2019 |
| Washington Capitals | William Hill | 2019 |
| Colorado Avenue | PointsBet | 2020 |
| Nashville Predators | DraftKings | 2020 |
| New York Rangers | DraftKings | 2020 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | BetRivers | 2020 |
| Detroit Red Wings | PointsBet | 2021 |
National Basketball Association
In 2018, the NBA signed its first contract with MGM Resorts International. It’s worth noting that this collaboration is known to be around $25 million. That wasn’t enough; the league pursued other cross-promotional deals.
Remarkably, the National Basketball Association ventured into various collaborations with betting entities, including DraftKings, William Hill, and many more.
Notably, it’s worth noting that the NBA is doing all it can to leverage its opportunities. Last March, the collaboration between the NBA and Bally’s Corporation kick-started. This led to Bally’s being a recognized sportsbook for the NBA.
NBA Team | Partner | Year of Collaboration |
| New Orleans Pelicans | Harrah’s New Orleans | 2018 |
| Denver Nuggets | PointsBet | 2019 |
| Indiana Pacers | PointsBet, DraftKings | 2020 |
| New York Knicks | DraftKings, FanDuel | 2020 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | BetMGM, DraftKings, Action 24/7 | 2020 |
| Washington Wizards | William Hill | 2020 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | DraftKings, BetMGM, Fox Bet | 2020, 2020. 2020 |
| Detroit Pistons | DraftKings, FanDuel, Betrivers, PointsBet | 2020, 2020. 2021, 2021 |
Major League Baseball
2018 was a very spontaneous deal-making year for the gambling giant MGM. That year, MGM partnered with Major League Baseball on a non-exclusive contract. This led to MGM emerging as MLB’s official betting partner. In 2019, MLB partnered with other top gambling platforms like FanDuel and DraftKings.
The occurrences of these deals were just some weeks apart; DraftKings announced their collaboration with the MLB in July, while FanDuel made their announcement in August. FanDuel emerged as the league’s official gambling partner, while DraftKings became MLB’s authorized gambling partner. This allowed both companies the complete privileges to promote their brand and services during games.
Furthermore, the MLB came into deals with other sports betting sites like theScore, Bet365, Betcris, and others. Individual teams had some deals functioning to date. These teams include.
MLB Teams | Partners | Year of Collaboration |
| Boston Red Sox | MGM Springfield | 2019 |
| Colorado Rockies | DraftKings | 2020 |
| Chicago Cubs | DraftKings | 2020 |
| Detroit Tigers | PointsBet | 2020 |
| Washington Nationals | BetMGM | 2021 |
Conclusion
There are many ongoing collaborations between sports teams in the United States and online gambling platforms like FanDuel, MGM, and many more. These collaborations cut across many leagues and teams and have benefited both the sports teams and the betting companies.
Meta Description
Sports and gambling have become an inseparable duo. This article examines the major collaborations between sports teams and gambling entities.
