After the Supreme Court ruling that allowed states to decide for themselves whether or not to legalize sports gaming, the rise in the number of states who want to legalize sports gaming has also given way to other businesses. In May, the Supreme Court struck down a decades-old law passed by Congress in the early 1990s limiting most legal sports gambling to Nevada, which was the only state to have single-sports gambling. Since the ruling, seven additional states have passed legislation to legalize sports wagering in some form and more are expected to follow suit. One of the businesses that has sprung up as a result of the Supreme Court decision is media, namely podcasts, dedicated to sports gambling, with the hopes that more of this type of programming will follow.
The Action Network
The Action Network was created in 2017 as a network that is focused on data and analysis services for sports gamers, as well as an avenue for discussion of sports, sports forecasting and sports teams in general. The Action Network is a partnership with ESPN that has produced a daily streaming show for the network as well as related sports gaming content. The network has also partnered with a radio broadcasting company to distribute a podcast to networks nationwide.
The Podcast
The podcast, which is going to be called “The Favorites,” will debut late this month and will present three shows a day. It will feature conversation and analysis of sports, betting lines and trends in sports betting. While the podcast may feature different guest commentators and analysts, the regular hosts will be Chad Millman, the company’s head of media; Bob Scucci, who is a bookmaker; and Geoff Schwartz, a former NFL player.
The podcast comes as an answer to the public’s growing interest in sports gaming with many people wanting to discuss sports gaming and different sports in general. The United States is ravenous for sports and there are many different leagues that Americans love to watch and bet on, including the NFL, the NCAA (football and basketball) the MLB and the NHL, as well as a rising number of Americans who love MLS. While major league athletic teams remain popular, there has been a huge rise in fantasy sports gameplay as well as the explosion of the esports phenomenon.
All of the increased interest in sports and sports gaming has led the Action Network down the path of sports gaming podcasts, but they aren’t the only one. Sportsbooks and sports franchises want to reach eager fans. In addition, people want to hear individual broadcasts dedicated to the sports that they love.
Other companies besides the Action Network are looking into the possibility of creating sports podcasts geared towards sports gamers, especially during college football and basketball season when the most bets are placed. Fox Sports has a sportsbooks show in the works and ESPN, while not planning a stand-alone sportsbook show, incorporates gaming into many of its shows, peppering fantasy sports statistics into shows throughout the day, for example. Sports Illustrated also has programming and content related to sportsbooks.
While doing a sportsbook podcast may be a little premature, podcasts have been the harbinger of the future for quite a while. Several current sports broadcasters got their start on podcasts or have incorporated podcasting into their on-air programs, creating online content from television programs, to keep up with the trend. If “The Favorites” is successful, it is sure to be followed by other podcasts, as fans and sportsbooks gamers seek as much information on their beloved teams as possible.
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