MGM new official gaming partner of NFL’s New York Jets

Casino operator MGM Resorts has signed an “official gaming partnership” with the National Football League’s New York Jets.

On Wednesday, MGM announced that it had entered into a “first of its kind” multi-year deal with the Jets. MGM called the pact “the most comprehensive and integrated gaming partnership” to date between a gaming operator and the NFL since the league relaxed its anti-gambling stance this summer.

The deal involves the usual signage and branding opportunities, but also allows Jets fans access to “mobile play-along predictive game I Called It,” which will be available in the Official New York Jets App but will be labeled as “presented by” MGM’s in-house interactive gambling brand PlayMGM (which, as of August, includes a sports betting component in New Jersey).

The I Called It game is free-play and includes both pre-game and in-play options, but players can (for the moment, at least) only win non-cash prizes. However, MGM notes that the deal allows the company to promote “PlayMGM’s online gaming platforms and mobile apps to millions of fans,” thereby allowing New Jersey-based Jets fans to inadvertently stumble into a real-money betting opportunity.