Category Archives: NFL

DraftKings ventures into world of fantasy eSports

DraftKings is expanding the fantasy horizon. The popular daily fantasy sports site announced it will add eSports in its lineup, alongside NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL.

The Boston-based website will begin offering fantasy eSports contests on Oct. 1, with the League of Legends World Championships. This means players can draft a team of professional gamers and compete against others online for real money, much like the traditional fantasy sports like football and basketball.

Participants can play for free or pay a minimal $3 entry fee to win $25,000, among other cash prize contests.

“eSports is one of the world’s most popular spectator sports,” DraftKings CRO and co-founder Matt Kalish said in a statement.

Pallone: Major leagues start singing new tune following calls for DFS probe

New Jersey’s tireless advocate for sports betting legalization wants the industry “out of the shadows.”

During a forum hosted by the International Centre for Sport Security, Rep. Frank Pallone said he believes the Congress would’ve already passed a law that will legalize such form of gambling, if not for “the sports leagues opposing sports betting.”

“This is a billion-dollar industry run by organized crime, and instead we’d like to see money generated through tax revenues that could go to state education, for instance,” Pallone said during the forum, according to NewJersey.com.

Online sports gambling are outlawed under the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), but Pallone has been working diligently to end PASPA’s despotic rule in his home state. Last January, the lawmaker reintroduced a bill that would have New Jersey offer full-fledged sports betting, just like Nevada.

NFL Sunday Betting Recap Week 2

NFL favorites carried the day in Week 1 and they punished bookmakers as a result. Heavily backed teams like the Packers, Dolphins, Bengals and Broncos all kicked sand in the face the odds makers, making it one of the more their disastrous opens to an NFL season ever. There is a saying, though … something about the sun shining on a dog’s rear end. Well, yesterday it did.

It was, indeed, a dog day afternoon as the glorious beams landed in unusual places like Cleveland, Jacksonville, Oakland and Washington. Home dogs all, the Browns, Jaguars, Raiders and Redskins not only covered the number but they won outright.

Tennessee and St. Louis, the unlikely victims of uprisings in Cleveland and Washington, respectively, were especially hard on the betting public. The Browns horrible Week 1 showing, coupled with Marcus Mariota’s brilliant Week 1 dissection of the Bucs, had the public backing the Titans at 71-percent against the spread. The Rams, meanwhile, suckered 69-percent of the public’s money this week after their season opening upset of the Seahawks.

Only the Ravens and Dolphins garnered more public backing, hitting 79 and 80-percent prior to kickoff. Baltimore (-6) failed to escape the Black Hole, falling 33-37 to Oakland while Miami (-5) suffered a 20-23 loss to the usually toothless Jaguars.

Bills-Pats: Rex Ryan Eager For Another Shot at Belichick

Rex Ryan always made it a point to make it kind of personal when he went against the New England Patriots as the head coach of the New York Jets. No one expects much to change now that he is at the helm of another AFC East rival, the Buffalo Bills. It is with this in mind that NFL bettors will check out these two teams in action, starting at 1 PM ET at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, NY.

The Bills were the NFL’s best defense last season with regard to points allowed per drive, and they retained much of their strength from last season, with the only major differences being the absence of linebacker Kiko Alonso (trade), who was injured anyway, and the switch from Jim Schwartz to Dennis Thurman as the defensive coordinator. They were a real pain in the neck for Andrew Luck to deal with last week. Luck completed just 26 of his 49 passes and tossed two interceptions, as the Bills were in his face much of the day. By getting out to a two-touchdown lead early, the Bills also rendered Indy’s revamped running game relatively useless. And Tyrod Taylor, the starting quarterback as named by Ryan, went 14 of 19 for 195 yards, and did not suffer a sack.

What was kind of interesting about Buffalo’s performance last Sunday was that LeSean McCoy was not a very big part of it. McCoy had 17 carries for 41 yards, a paltry 2.4 yards per attempt. However, Karlos Williams was available for some balance (six carries, 55 yards) and that will be some comfort for Buffalo fans, since McCoy  is reportedly still bothered by a bad hamstring. Those injuries have a way of lingering.

In the NFL betting odds that are posted on this game, the Bills are very slight favorites:

NFL Week 2 Betting Preview

This week’s football slate is an important one in both the NFL and NCAA as several clubs look to get a leg up in what figure to be tightly contested division races. First up in the NFL are the Broncos and Chiefs, who will lock horns at Arrowhead Stadium later tonight.

Kansas City opened as a 1.5 favorite in this evening’s clash with Denver, but last week’s effort by both teams has the Chiefs laying three points. Andy Reid’s squad went on the road and scored an impressive 27-20 victory over the favored Texans while the Broncos knocked off the Ravens 19-13 at Mile High.

In spite of Denver’s win, Peyton Manning’s performance was an eyebrow raising one, and not in a good way. Manning’s play dropped off sharply at the end of last season and many wondered if this would be the year he fell off a cliff, so to speak. If his showing against Baltimore means anything, Manning is on the precipice … of something not so great.

The Chiefs have been horrific as a home favorite against divisional opposition in recent years, but the public moved the line probably in large part because of Manning, who is also dealing with a bad back. And right now, 61-percent of the money is on KC at -3.

Niners Are Home Dogs in Jimmy T’s “Debut”

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CHARLES JAY ON FOOTBALL BETTING

Niners Are Home Dogs in Jimmy T’s “Debut”

Yes, they were asking “Jimmy Who?” when the new coach of the San Francisco 49ers was announced, and it is up to Jim Tomsula to demonstrate that he indeed was the wisest choice to succeed Jim Harbaugh, who is admittedly a hard act to follow.

NFL Sunday Betting Recap Week 1

Opening week of the NFL season is something akin to the Super Bowl in terms of excitement, particularly in betting circles. Bettors and bookmakers alike froth at the mouth awaiting to see how they will fare when the pads really start popping and the action on the field is devoid of Bobby Boucher types.

Week 1 typically leans in favor of the house as the public lands hard and heavy on teams laying points (i.e. spotting the other team), but this year, books took it on the chin with no fewer than eight favorites covering the number.

The two teams delivering the most uncomfortable shots to the odds makers were the Green Bay Packers and Miami Dolphins. Aaron Rodgers and his cohorts closed as a -7 favorite against their NFC North rivals the Chicago Bears while the Fins were a -4 favorite visiting the Washington Redskins. 80% of the public money was on Green Bay while 90% threw their hard earned cash at Ndamukong Suh and company.

Both clubs induced more than a few choice words and gastrointestinal pains from their backers with each trailing at the break and, in the case of Miami, into the fourth quarter.

Rodgers and Cutler Must Improvise in Packers-Bears Matchup

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CHARLES JAY ON FOOTBALL BETTING

Rodgers and Cutler must improvise in Packers-Bears matchup

From the vantage point of some football bettors, the Green Bay Packers might be behind the eight-ball right at the start of the 2015 season. But is that really the case? Or is this just another small speed bump that can be overcome by an elite quarterback?

Roger Goodell open to change role in NFL disciplinary process

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is willing to lessen his role in the player discipline process, but still reluctant to give up the final say.

Goodell spoke publicly for the first time since U.S. District Court Judge Richard Berman vacated New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s four-game suspension.

Appearing on ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike” in the Morning, Goodell said that he’s “very open” to changing his role and called it “extremely time consuming. He has been suggesting to several owners that a discipline officer or a panel making the initial decision on whether to suspend a player “would make for a better system.”

The players union, the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), wants disciplinary power now held by Goodell to be handled by a neutral arbitrator but the league resists third-party arbitration.

American Pharoah and Other Summer’s Top Stories

By Terry Lyons @terrylyons, Contributing Columnist for @TheDailyPayoff

In the eastern USA, it’s getting dark at 7pm, the networks have concluded their endless broadcasting of meaningless NFL preseason games and, for you Steely Dan fans out there, the Wolverine is on its way towards Annandale.

Which means, summer is almost over.

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There’s been plenty of news posted on The Daily Payoff during the past two months but maybe, like me, you’ve been preoccupied, reading those trashy paperback novels, listening to the sounds of summer at the beach or watching the Red Sox stumble to another last place finish.

To be sure you’re up-to-speed, I’m shaking the sand out of the beach chair and my reporter’s notebook to review a few important occurrences which took place during the past two months while we were all Gone Fishin’.

1. Triple Crown winner American Pharoah took the track at Monmouth Park for The Haskell and did not disappoint a New Jersey record 60, 983 horse racing fans who turned out to see the champ continue his winning ways after a 58-day lay-off from the historic win at the Belmont Stakes. Pharoah then was saddled up for The Travers at Saratoga and the track’s reputation as the “Graveyard of Champions” remained intact as longshot “Keen Ice” upset the triple crown winner. On October 31, all eyes will be on American Pharoah at the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland which is expected to be the colt’s last race before heading out to stud and a cool $150,000 per pop. What a horse! What a life!

2. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) declined jurisdiction over the plight of Northwestern University football players seeking to register as a union. The unanimous decision by the NLRB avoided involvement in the hot potato of “student athlete” rights as they pertain to the NCAA, but it noted the ruling pertained to State-run universities and did not address private schools. The issue of paying collegiate players to play remains a possibility and the case it likely to be appealed to Federal Court.

3. Speaking of Federal cases, DeflateGate was resolved, at least temporarily, when Judge Richard Berman of the US Federal Court, Southern District of New York vacated Tom Brady’s four-game suspension. The judge also took the NFL to task on various procedures of its flimsy Wells Report and subsequent hearing before “Cop-Judge-Jury” Commissioner Roger Goodell. Remember, it all began on January 18, 2015 and could have been resolved by January 20 with some foresight by the NFL and the Patriots. Overall, the entire process has been a colossal waste of time and, ultimately tax-payers money. While it’s now subject to the NFL’s appeal, the entire ridiculous fairytale was possibly a giant smoke-screen left to cover the NFL’s more problematic player image headlines, like Ray Rice and several other domestic violence cases.

4. Although dozens of popular and admirable athletes, executives and administrators have passed away in 2015, some taken far too early, it’s important to recognize the passing of former NY Giants star Frank Gifford. Known to so many as the chiseled and competent anchor of Monday Night Football from 1971 to 1998, Gifford passed away from natural causes on August 9th, a week before his 85th birthday. He was lauded for his pioneering role in transitioning from athlete to broadcaster. Rest in Peace to Giff.

5. Before the 2015 NFL season kicks-off, the two industry leaders of Daily Fantasy Sports, Draft Kings and Fan Duel, will have spent a combined $110 million dollars – just on TV ads, with a reported $86.2 million attributed to Draft Kings, according to combined reports by ispot.tv and Kantar Media. Those figures do not – repeat NOT – include the millions spent on radio, digital and traditional billboard and print advertising deals. As the popular and DFS friendly NFL season kicks-off on September 10 and continues with its full schedule on September 13, the barrage of advertising done by Draft Kings and Fan Duel, already ubiquitous, will reach spending levels only approached in prior years by the beer companies. Jason Robbins, CEO of Draft Kings, and Nigel Eccles, the head of Fan Duel, can both be crowned as the most powerful men in sports in 2015.

6. On August 25, the Third US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the State of New Jersey to uphold prior verdicts that NJ’s plans to authorize sports betting were a violation of the federal law, the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. The court’s ruling points any future movement in the legalization of sports betting to Congress. Vocal NJ State Senator Ray Lesniak will need to ramp up efforts at the Congressional level, not via his own’s state government, to make any further progress. In the past, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who opposed the efforts in NJ, has written that he and the league support a federally legislated and regulated law to allow sports gambling. The late August ruling will shelve the issue for years to come, unless you believe Congress can actually get something done?

7. Boston 2024 is no longer. Since I dedicated an entire column to the issue on July 8, I will spare readers from past details of Boston’s inept bid and the politics surrounding every decision. Instead, I must note the lost opportunity of hosting an Olympic Games has most Boston and Massachusetts residents singing “Hallelujah,” while some of us wonder if our generation will accomplish anything of significance or just continue to complain about everything and do nothing? The US Olympic Committee and the City of Los Angeles quickly moved forward and have plans to nominate LA as a potential host of the 2024 Games, but the City of Angels will face very stiff competition from the likes of Rome and Paris for the IOC’s blessing to host the youth of the world in 2024. My money is on Paris.

Tom Brady to start NFL season opener after judge overturns suspension

A federal judge has overturned the four-game suspension the National Football League imposed on New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (pictured on the left) over the ‘deflategate’ scandal.

On Thursday, US District Judge Richard Berman overturned the suspension because it had been “premised on several significant legal deficiencies.” Berman said the NFL had failed to (a) provide Brady with sufficient notice of his potential punishment, (b) make NFL investigators available for cross-examination, and (c) allow Brady’s legal team access to investigative files, including witness interview notes.

Brady stood accused of being involved in a conspiracy to deflate footballs below NFL minimum pressure standards in the AFC championship game against the Indianapolis Colts this January. Brady allegedly preferred softer balls in wet conditions. (Insert your own puerile double-entendre here.)

The NFL’s original investigation of the brouhaha turned up no concrete evidence of Brady’s involvement in the deflation, which was ultimately pinned on two Patriots’ equipment managers. But the report concluded that Brady was “generally aware” of the ball boys’ activities and Brady’s protestations to the contrary were deemed “implausible.”

DraftKings partners with NFL teams ahead of the football season

DraftKings, targeting further fan coverage ahead of the start of the 2015/16 National Football League season, has opened three more branded fantasy sports lounges in NFL stadiums.

Under a partnership with the Dallas Cowboys, the DraftKings Fantasy Sports Lounge will be located at field-level in AT&T Stadium, giving DraftKings players a chance to cheer their favorite NFL players. The Cowboys will also feature DraftKings branding within the stadium and across the team’s digital, television, and radio networks.

“DraftKings and the Cowboys share the same passion for football, sports and business, making this a natural partnership,” said Dallas Cowboys Executive Vice President / Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Jerry Jones, Jr. “The daily segment of fantasy sports is exploding, with more fans joining every day.”

Another sports lounge, The DraftKings Fantasy Sports Zone, will be located at Gillette Stadium—home of the New England Patriots, which will display HDTVs so fans can watch NFL games.

Incognito says NFL system is bogus, Goodell has too much power

Richie Incognito shared his thoughts on how the National Football League (NFL) investigate misconduct, comparing his case to Deflategate.

In November 2013, NFL hired Ted Wells, the NFL’s go to scandal investigator, to look at the bullying allegations that Jonathan Martin had made against a few of his Dolphins teammates—Incognito, John Jerry and Mike Pouncey.

In an interview with Newsday, Incognito talked about how the NFL investigates misconduct, and compared his case to Tom Brady’s four-month long Deflategate investigation. He accuses Wells of not being independent.

“I just think it’s bogus, the whole system in how it’s set up with Roger and the complete, absolute power he has,” Incognito said. “He has so much power and he hires independent investigators who come in and are obviously not independent. They come in with an agenda and they come in looking to find facts to back up their argument. All the facts are slanted in their favor.

NFL, DOJ past argument shows sports betting to be a “game of skill”

According to documents discovered by ESPN through searches of public records, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and NFL lawyers have called sports betting a “game of skill” in past legal arguments.

In 2003, the NFL was among several groups attempting to prevent the state of Delaware from reintroducing a football-based lottery game. The NFL hired the law firm of Covington & Burlington to argue against allowing such bets, characterizing the football-based lottery as a predominately skill-based game, and therefore would be barred by the state’s own constitution.

“Sports betting combines both skill and chance, but the element of chance, though perhaps significant, is not ‘dominant,’” the Covington & Burlington lawyers wrote in a 2003 memo to the Delaware legislature. “Typical sports bettors gather and analyze information, sometimes in significant quantities, about the nuances of the sports on which they bet…they then weight the probabilities of each team winning and compare their determinations to those of the odds-maker.”

A similar argument was made by Lynch in the United States v. DiCristina in 2013, explaining how certain sports bettors move betting lines, a technique similar to bluffing in poker.

Cancelled fantasy sports expo sues NFL for “blatant and premeditated sabotage”

The National Football League will have to justify its hypocritical anti-gambling stance in court.

On Monday, a Texas-based company named The Fan Expo LLC sued the NFL in US District Court in Dallas County. Fan Expo is seeking over $1m in damages related to last month’s abrupt cancellation of the National Fantasy Football Convention (NFFC).

The three-day convention, which was to feature Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and a host of other NFL stars, was scrapped one month before it was set to kick off after the NFL ‘reminded’ the NFL Players Association of its longstanding policy of not associating the NFL brand with gambling.

The NFFC was scheduled to take place at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas, a non-gaming appendage to Las Vegas Sands’ Venetian Resort Hotel Casino. But the NFL insisted that this proximity contravened its policy of preventing its players from engaging in “promotional activities or other appearances at or in connection with events that are held at or sponsored by casinos.”

The Double Standard in Sports and Gambling

By Terry Lyons @terrylyons, Contributing columnist @TheDailyPayoff

The landscape is riddled with double standards, hypocrisy, deceit and public posturing. No, we’re not calling out the politicians and law-makers, we’re talking about sports and sports gambling.
The North American sports industry has a lot of different policies on gambling. Let’s list a few.
There’s a policy for sports gambling in Nevada.
There are federal policies for Delaware, Montana and Oregon that allow for lottery-type games and parlay tickets. There was a similar policy for New Jersey, but state legislators failed to move on that loophole back in 1992 and are now trying to carve out an entire new approach for sports wagering while they continue to offer other forms of gambling and poker-play online to Jersey residents and in-the-flesh in Atlantic City.
There are policies for horse racing. There are policies for Off Track Betting parlors affiliated with horse racing.
There are policies for Native American tribal casinos.
There are different policies for many of the Canadian provinces, some of which have NBA or NHL teams and many which offer parlay wagering similar to offerings in Delaware.
There are policies for international games played, ever so frequently, in London, Mexico and other global destinations by the major North American sports leagues.
There are policies for international play where the Man United’s, Real Madrid’s and FC Barcelona’s along with the FIFA’s and FIBA’s of the world all have top-level bookmaker sponsorships with fully established and, in many cases, public companies like William Hill or BWIN.
There are policies for players.
There are policies for coaches and managers.
There are policies for front office and league personnel.
Some of those very policies drift over to the fantasy sports world where the leagues, their teams and broadcast outlets are making bold and strategic moves to cash in on the craze. The message conveyed is that it’s quite all right to take equity positions, rake in tons of sponsorship dollars, create fantasy gaming lounges and signage, but it’s hands-off for the players, coaches and office-workers.
I’m okay with that. In many cases, contest rules call for employees and their immediate families to refrain from entering the contests to allow the paying customers every possible chance of winning the big prizes without so much as a doubt that an “insider” would have access to the same jackpot.
But here is where the hypocrisy train leaves the station.
For one New York minute, don’t you think the owners, trainers, grooms and jockeys, roaming the back-stretch, have a few bucks on the races?
And, it’s not just horse racing we’re focusing on, here.
It’s perfectly acceptable for professional and amateur golfers to put down a few bucks on practice rounds or trick shots and nobody thinks twice. All in fun, and usually for stakes as low as $1 or maybe as high as $20, Phil Mickelson will have the gallery roaring with laughter on a missed “up and down,” as he did last August at the Barclays Championship in New Jersey.
While Mickelson’s antics with the fans, surely done all in fun, are no different than what takes place on nearly every weekend, on every hole of every golf course in the land, his more – shall we say – aggressive gambling on the NFL and other sports, done legally in Las Vegas, might be of more concern.
Why is Pete Rose vilified for his gambling on baseball and other sports, but Mickelson and Floyd Mayweather are beloved for their frequently boasts about a big hauls in Vegas on specific games or a successful futures bet?
Why can Maurice Jones-Drew be the voice of Fantasy Radio on Sirius XM satellite radio one day but Tony Romo and a group of NFL players were not able to attend a fantasy sports convention organized by a Vegas hotel promoter? Meanwhile, by the way, the NBA Summer League, USA Basketball training camp and the league meetings were putting up the tents at the Wynn Resort.
When basketball’s World Cup or the Olympics roll around, FIBA’s official sponsor BWIN will be taking action on the game in all corners of the earth, sans the almighty U.S.of A.Come this September 20th, BWIN will be taking wagers on the European Championship (qualifier for the 2016 Rio Summer Games) where pros and amateurs roam the courts, but should  someone mention wagering on college basketball-aged players in North America and ghosts of Henry Hill will surely hunt you down and haunt your Uncle Paulie.
At least, the NBA’s progressive Commissioner Adam Silver has come out to publicly state his long-range viewpoint and his desire to properly prepare for and regulate gaming, preferably on a Federal level rather than going State-by-State or Province-by-Province (in Canada) with different laws on the books. Silver’s NBA made a strategic equity play to back DFS provider Fan Duel and many sports Venture Capital funds – some of the coffers backed by team owners in all of the sports – are lining up for strategic plays in gaming, igaming and tech.
Isn’t it time for the hypocrisy to end? Isn’t it time for the commissioners of the four major pro sports of North America to come to terms with the issue, following Silver’s giant-step lead from his self-penned article in the New York Times? Isn’t the facade of DFS gaming just the taxiway to the promised land of full-scale sports wagering worldwide?
In a truly global economy, shouldn’t the gaming laws of the United States and Canada reflect the laws of Europe, Asia, South America and Australia?
Don’t bet on it happening anytime real soon.

Steelers submit application to host Super Bowl in 2023

The Pittsburgh Steelers has officially submitted its application with the National Football League (NFL) to host the Super Bowl LVII at Heinz Field in 2023.

News of the application surfaced when Steelers president Art Rooney II met with Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and other community leaders.

Rooney confirmed through a statement on Wednesday that the team formally applied in May.

“We met this morning with local community leaders to provide an update on formally submitting our application to the NFL to bid for Super Bowl LVII in Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania,” said Rooney.“The application is an early step in the bidding process, and we will continue to meet with representatives of the Mayor’s Office, County Executive’s Office, VisitPittsburgh, Allegheny Conference as well as other community leaders to review the requirements with the hopes of submitting our bid to host Super Bowl LVII in 2023.”

FanDuel Grows NBA Platform

By @TheDailyPayoff

While DraftKings relationship with MLB and their enhancements in golf have given them great buzz this early summer, FanDuel continues its focus on the winter and its two core sports, says its chief executive.
CEO Nigel Eccles said football and basketball remain its focus, taking the opportunity with the NBA Draft Thursday to announced an expansion of its NBA partnerships for the fall at Tuesday’s FSTA Conference in New York,

FanDuel locked in exclusive multi-year partnerships with 13 league franchises – the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Orlando Magic and Utah Jazz.
The deal hands FanDuel marketing assets from in-arena digital signage and in-game promotions to digital, TV and radio advertising, among other branding initiatives. FanDuel will also collaborate with the individual organizations to continue to bring unique experiences to fans, including exclusive player meet-and-greets and VIP road trips to events.
“Partnering with these NBA organizations has been an incredible asset to FanDuel’s growth and business. NBA fans comprise a younger, mobile-centric demographic, looking for new ways to engage with their favorite sport, teams and athletes throughout the duration of the season, which is exactly what they get on FanDuel,” said Nigel Eccles, CEO and co-founder, in a release. “We’re going to keep partnering with franchises that recognize FanDuel’s ability to keep fans in their seat with their eyes glued to every game because they have a player on their fantasy team that night.”

During the conference the value of pay fantasy was again backed up by NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum in an interview with Eric Fisher of The Sports Business Journal.
“We have made our stance clear that we do not see pay fantasy as gambling, and it is a prime way for us to engage deeper with our fans,” Tatum said. “Our fans and our teams have made it clear that this is a growing engagement platform and we are excited about continuing to work to enhance our relationship.”

While not exclusive with the NBA, FanDuel has made it clear that their key business objectives and their growth strategy is revolving around the activation and engagement with the NBA, as well as their recently announced partnerships with a majority of the NFL teams. The NFL remains the least engaged league in an official capacity in pay fantasy, with MLB having taken up an equity position with DraftKings and Fan Duel with the NBA. Several NBA teams, including the New York Knicks, have chosen to partner with DraftKings as part of a wider cross-promotional strategy, but Eccles remains bullish on the overall basketball relationship as the core of Fan Duel’s platform in 2015 and beyond.

High Stakes Game in TV Ratings

By TERRY LYONS, contributing columnist @TheDailyPayoff
@terrylyons

American Pharoah’s run to the Triple Crown grabbed our fair share of attention recently, watching intently as the once-in-a-generation thoroughbred won graded stakes at Churchill Downs, Pimlico and Belmont Raceway.

American Pharoah delivered on the track, but his Triple Crown win translated into only 18.6 million television viewers on NBC, down from the 20.6 million fans who tuned into California Chrome’s failed bid at The Belmont in 2014. When Pharoah had the Triple Crown on the line at The Belmont, you might’ve thought the stakes were as high as they’d get ,but as spring turns to summer and the stretch-run at Belmont is in the rearview, there’s no higher stakes in professional sports than that of the TV ratings game.

Certainly the National Hockey League and NBC benefitted from a strong audience lead-in from The Belmont, as Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final calculated a tune-in of 6.6 million viewers for Game 2 of the series between the Tampa Bay Lightening and Chicago Blackhawks, the strongest non-clinching game TV audience since 1994. The data will improve as the Stanley Cup series, split 2-2 as of this writing, moves on to Tampa for a pivotal fifth game.

Meanwhile, after the longest break in NBA playoff history between the Conference Finals and the NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers are in the midst of a memorable NBA Finals series, with MVP Steph Curry of the Warriors and the league’s best player, Lebron James of the Cavs doing battle on the court. However, the real numbers are being crunched off the court by the Disney Corporation, the caretakers of ABC Sports, cash cow cable entity ESPN and the NBA on ESPN property.

As of this writing, the 2015 NBA Finals are the highest-rated ever on ABC with Game 4 delivering a 13.9 overnight rating to be joined with the league’s soaring numbers after the first three games of the Finals. Those ratings points translate to some 18.6 million viewers turning into the series, with the numbers — like the NHL’s — sure to go up as the league is guaranteed no fewer than six games to determine the champion.

Delving deeper into the NBA on ABC numbers, the Nielsen ratings in Game 4 were up 31 percent from the Miami vs. San Antonio numbers of a year ago with the ABC ratings averaging 13.1 (overnight), up some 26 percent over 2014. Of course, those are record-setting numbers for ABC Sports and do not factor against the record numbers the NBA did when NBC Sports carried the property. During that run, veteran broadcast chief Dick Ebersol put the pedal to the metal to promote Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls to the tune of a Game 6 1998 NBA Finals record rating of 18 No fewer than 30 million tuned into the NBA from United States households, alone, never mind the growing international audience for basketball.

To be clear, the television ratings game of the winter-spring sports, such as horse racing, ice hockey and basketball cannot and will not compete with the television audience for the NFL’s biggest game – The Super Bowl. Last February, the New England Patriots exciting victory over the Seattle Seahawks saw a Nielsen rating blockbuster of 47.5 that translated to a US audience of 114.4 million viewers for the NFL and TV’s biggest audience of the year. Quite simply, there will never be a sporting audience viewing a game on TV that is larger than the NFL’s Super Bowl audience.

The other interesting point of comparison in the high stakes ratings game for televised sports properties in Major League Baseball which saw an 8.2 ratings average and 13.8 million viewers tune into the 2014 World Series, according to Sports Media Watch. Between Jordan’s last game in 1998 and 2008, the World Series consistently out-rated the NBA Finals. But, over the past five years (2010-2014), the NBA Finals has out-rated Major League Baseball’s World Series and the trend is surely going to continue in 2015, unless October brings about a miracle story (Insert Chicago Cubs joke here!)

One other interesting factor in televised sports ratings is to look at the numbers from the competing local markets. In Cleveland, Game 4 of the NBA Finals generated a 45.7 rating for the 20+ point Golden State blowout of the Cavs. In the Bay Area (SF market), the broadcast delivered a solid 30.5 rating. Pretty amazing audience numbers for the NBA which was largely criticized, especially by NASCAR and Fox Sports tv executives, when the 2003 NBA Finals drew all-time ratings lows of 6.5 for the New Jersey Nets vs. San Antonio Spurs series.
That was a long time ago.