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| Axios Sports |
| By Kendall Baker ·Mar 21, 2022 |
| 👋 Good morning! Welcome to a special edition of Axios Sports recapping our weekend in Vegas and examining the state of sports betting. Today's word count: 1,961 words (7 minutes). Let's sports... |
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| 1 big thing: 🌆 Making the pilgrimage |
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| Photo: Found Image Holdings/Corbis via Getty Images |
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| Wagering on sports in America has never been easier or more accessible, but that didn't stop us from going to Las Vegas for one of the biggest betting weekends of the year. State of play: Now that most states have legalized sports betting, Vegas' status as the epicenter of the industry is being challenged. - On one hand, more people being able to bet from their couch could mean fewer descending on Las Vegas to unleash their inner gambler.
- On the other hand, more legal markets means more bettors, all of whom may want to make the pilgrimage to Sin City for the full experience.
What they're saying: "From a thought leadership perspective, this is still the place to be," says Brian Musburger, CEO of Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN), a 24-hour sports betting network. - He compared it to finance: People are trading and talking stocks all over the country, but Wall Street is still Wall Street.
- And so it is with sports betting: Vegas is still Vegas. This is where many of the best oddsmakers and betting experts call home.
The big picture: This "Vegas vs. the world" narrative extends to the betting operators themselves, as fantasy sports companies like FanDuel and DraftKings duke it out against legacy casino brands like Caesars and MGM. The bottom line: New Jersey, New York and others may surpass Nevada in terms of money wagered in any given month, but Sin City — at least culturally — remains the sports betting capital of America. |
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| 2. 🎰 Circa: A sports betting paradise |
| Photo: Kendall Baker/Axios At most casinos, the sportsbook is a side dish. At Circa in downtown Las Vegas, it's the main course. Our experience: When you walk through the doors, your eyes are immediately drawn to a three-story-tall wall of screens comprising 78 million pixels, dubbed the largest sportsbook in the world. - Stadium seating is a great perk for those with the foresight (and money) to reserve a seat, but because the entire casino is built around the book, there's no bad seat in the house.
- VSiN has a production studio overlooking the viewing area, adding a sense of importance to the space. They were broadcasting live all weekend.
What they're saying: Owner Derek Stevens is a rabid sports fan who set out to create the ideal betting locale. After COVID restrictions made for a tame (and masked) experience in 2021, this weekend was Circa's true coming-out party. - "This is exactly what I envisioned," Stevens told us amid the din of screaming fans. "This is not a bartender at a Buffalo Wild Wings changing the television."
- "Just feel that roar. How good does that feel?" he continued, before closing with a kicker worthy of his creation: "I f--king love sports betting so much."
Bonus: There's also a stunning pool experience at Circa: Stadium Swim is just a few levels up with a 143-foot screen and outdoor betting windows. Photo: Jeff Tracy/Axios The big picture: We visited numerous other sportsbooks throughout the weekend, and none compared to Circa. To be fair, that's because they aren't trying to. - Casinos like Caesars Palace, the MGM Grand, the Bellagio and the Venetian all have books, but they're tucked off to the side amid the sea of slot machines and roulette tables.
- Sure, the screens are big and the betting windows plentiful, but they make it clear that sports — both viewing and betting — are secondary to casino games.
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| 3. 📱 Mobile madness: Not all laws created equal |
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| Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios |
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| Sports betting is legal in 30 states plus Washington, D.C., but legislation differs when it comes to how people bet. Some examples: - Mobile anywhere: New Jersey's betting handle since PASPA's repeal in 2018 exceeds even Nevada's thanks to its early adoption of mobile betting, and New York set a single-month record for any state ($1.6 billion) in January when mobile launched.
- In-house sign-up: After Illinois changed its law earlier this month to allow for remote registration, Nevada is the only state that requires users to register for mobile betting in-person.
- Retail only: An increasingly small number of states, including Delaware, Maryland and Mississippi, allow only in-person betting.
Our experience: It's obvious why Nevada is the lone state that requires in-person registration: Bettors must visit a casino — where endless money pits await — if they want the mobile experience. - From what we saw, people were more likely to wait in line to place bets at either a kiosk or in-person window, despite the ability to sign up for an app and place bets while roaming the casino floor.
- Maybe it's just an old habit dying hard. The thrill of holding a physical ticket and trading it in for cash holds an allure that clicking through your phone — however convenient — does not.
The bottom line: As we head home to D.C. (Kendall) and New York (Jeff), we'll go back to betting on our phones. Well, at least Jeff will ... D.C.'s city-sponsored app leaves something to be desired. |
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| A message from Axios |
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| 4. 🏀 Men's snapshot: Sweet 16 |
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| Mike Krzyzewski celebrates with Paolo Banchero. Photo: Lance King/Getty Images |
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| The men's Sweet 16 is set, and for the third time ever — and second year in a row — it features a 15-seed. Driving the news: Saint Peter's beat Murray State on Saturday, 70-60, joining Oral Roberts (2021) and Florida Gulf Coast (2013) as the only 15-seeds to advance this far. - Entering the game, Murray State had the nation's longest active winning streak (21 games); now, the Peacocks do (nine games).
- Fun fact: Saint Peter's is the first New Jersey school to reach the Sweet 16 since Seton Hall in 2000. Their point guard that year? Saint Peter's coach Shaheen Holloway.
Notes: - Legends square off: Mike Krzyzewski got the best of Tom Izzo in their sixth and final tournament matchup, with Duke beating Sparty, 85-76.
- Kingslayer: UNC's wild OT victory over Baylor was the Tar Heels' ninth win against a No. 1 since seeding began in 1979, tying Duke for the most ever.
- Going streaking: Gonzaga reached its seventh straight Sweet 16 (third-longest streak ever), and Michigan became the fifth team to reach five straight (Duke, Gonzaga, UNC, Kansas).
- Incredible turnaround: No. 11 Iowa State upset No. 3 Wisconsin, 54-49, to reach the Sweet 16 a year after going 2-22 (0-18 in the Big 12).
State of play: Play resumes later this week across four regions, only one of which features the top four seeds. - West (San Francisco): No. 1 Gonzaga vs. No. 4 Arkansas; No. 2 Duke vs. No. 3 Texas Tech
- East (Philadelphia): No. 4 UCLA vs. No. 8 UNC; No. 3 Purdue vs. No. 15 Saint Peter's
- South (San Antonio): No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 11 Michigan; No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 5 Houston
- Midwest (Chicago): No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 4 Providence; No. 10 Miami vs. No. 11 Iowa State
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| 5. 🏀 Women's snapshot: 24 teams left |
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| South Carolina dominated in historic fashion this weekend. Photo: Gerry Melendez/NCAA Photos via Getty Images |
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| The women's tournament is officially dubbed March Madness for the first time this year. It immediately lived up to that name with six double-digit seeds winning first-round games — as many as the previous two years combined. Plus: The Madness continued Sunday as two of those teams, No. 10 Creighton and No. 10 South Dakota, reached their first-ever Sweet 16. - Creighton beat No. 2 Iowa on a game-winner from Iowa transfer Lauren Jensen.
- South Dakota beat No. 2 Baylor, 61-47, ending the Bears' run of 12 straight Sweet 16 appearances.
Notes: - Record-setting defense: No. 1 South Carolina allowed a tournament-record-low 54 points through its first two games. That included allowing just four points to No. 16 Howard in the first half.
- Wildcats de-clawed: Kentucky became the first school since Florida in 2002 to see both its women (No. 11 Princeton) and men (No. 15 Saint Peter's) lose first-round games to double-digit seeds in the same year.
- Diaper dandy: Notre Dame's Olivia Miles (12-11-11) became the first freshman in tourney history (men or women) to record a triple-double.
State of play: Half the Sweet 16 is set, with eight more games today to determine the rest of the field. |
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| 6. 📉 Zoom out: Sports betting stocks take a hit |
 Data: Yahoo Finance; Chart: Thomas Oide/Axios While sports betting activity has exploded over the past year, sports betting stocks have largely stumbled as the public markets move away from the "grow at any cost" mindset and focus more on profitability. State of play: Betting operators have been spending vast amounts of money to acquire customers, engaging in an arms race that isn't sustainable in the long run. - Social media and TV broadcasts are littered with sports betting ads, as companies try to gain market share in an increasingly competitive industry.
- Investors were bullish at first, sending sports betting stocks soaring even when play stopped during the pandemic. But the narrative has shifted in tandem with the rest of the market.
By the numbers: Online sports betting brands spent more than $320 million on advertising in 2021, up 38% from 2020, per MediaRadar (subscription). Driving the news: Some operators are now scaling back their marketing efforts as they seek better LTV/CAC ratios (customer lifetime value vs. customer acquisition cost). - Caesars Sportsbook commercials, for example, will "largely disappear from screens," CEO Tom Reeg said last month. No more J.B. Smoove and the Manning brothers for a while.
- Caesars jumped nearly 6% in after hours trading following Reeg's remarks, as investors responded favorably to the decision to curtail media spending.
What to watch: Sports betting has already infiltrated sports media (see: Penn National acquiring Barstool Sports, FanDuel paying Pat McAfee $120 million), and content will play an even bigger role moving forward. - Media tie-ups allow operators to acquire customers more efficiently than ad blitzes. They also help establish a deeper connection with potential bettors, which leads to brand loyalty.
- Yes, but: There are risks in partnering with media brands. Regulators are investigating Penn National over concerns about Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, which could result in lost gambling licenses.
The bottom line: Sports betting companies are chasing a market that has massive growth potential. But at some point, they have to show profit. |
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| 7. 🇺🇸 Map du jour: State(s) of play |
 Data: American Gaming Association; Cartogram: Axios Visuals 11 of the men's Sweet 16 teams hail from states where legal sports betting is fully operational, though some have restrictions on wagering on college teams. |
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| 8. 🏆 Double Madness: Both teams still alive |
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| Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios |
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| Five schools currently have men's and women's teams still alive: - Arizona
- Iowa State
- Michigan
- North Carolina
- Villanova
Of note: UConn is the only school to ever win men's and women's D-I basketball national championships in the same year (2004). |
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| 9. 🏀 Dunk trivia |
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| Photo: John Todd/NCAA Photos via Getty Images |
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| Stanford's Fran Belibi on Friday became the third woman to dunk in the NCAA tournament. - Question: Name the other two.
- Hint: No. 1 WNBA draft pick in 2008 and 2013.
Answer at the bottom. |
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| 10. 🦚 1 Peacock thing: Cinderella has a 'stache |
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| Photo: Dylan Buell/Getty Images |
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| Doug Edert and his mustache — which began as a joke and was never meant to be permanent — have stolen America's heart. By the numbers: The Saint Peter's guard averaged 8.4 points over three seasons for the Peacocks, then scored 20 against Kentucky and 13 against Murray State. "I said, 'Maybe the mustache is giving me powers.' And now it's everywhere. I never thought this was going to happen, but it's just hilarious. There's a lot of memes, a lot of pictures online. I'm rocking with it. I love it. It's a part of me now." — Edert, via The Athletic ( subscription) |
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| A message from Axios |
| Advertise in Axios Sports |
| |
| |
| |
| Are you a marketer looking to reach decision makers who care about sports? Consider advertising with us: - Reach hundreds of thousands of people daily.
- Achieve your KPIs around business development, awareness, and product sales.
- Over 60% of our audience earns six figures per year and makes business purchasing decisions.
Let's Chat |
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| Talk tomorrow, Kendall "Busted bracket" Baker Trivia answer: Candace Parker (Tennessee) and Brittney Griner (Baylor) 🙏 Thanks for reading. Follow us at @kendallbaker and @jeffreytracy, and tell friends to sign up for Axios Sports. |
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