- Joe Ostrowski and Ross Tucker discuss the PGA TOUR debuting a broadcast alternative during live golf dedicated to sports betting, in partnership with Peacock and NBC Sports. BetQL Daily, M-F, 10-1p ET with Joe Ostrowski with Ross Tucker!
- MGM Resorts has partnered up with Yahoo to integrate their BetMGM sports betting product into the Yahoo Sports app as of November. Terms of the deal were not disclosed but it is believed that.
On Thursday, Yahoo Sports is launching Yahoo Sportsbook powered by BetMGM, which integrates sports betting opportunities into the Yahoo Sports app and desktop experiences. Yahoo announced today that they’re launching a “Yahoo Sportsbook powered by BetMGM” element to their main app, which will allow for users nationwide to view odds on games. It will also allow New. You can expect more beyond the Hopper access, too. Dish's deal will expand DraftKings to other services, including Boost Mobile's network and Sling TV.It's difficult to imagine someone switching to one of these services just to get easier access to betting or fantasy sports, but the DraftKings pact could give you a reason to stay if you were thinking of leaving for a rival provider.
The partnership will launch in November and include live events and broadcast productions
Verizon Media’s Yahoo Sports has entered into an exclusive multi-year partnership with BetMGM to power sports betting for Yahoo Sports and create what it’s calling “collaborative content experiences and live events.” As part of the deal, which kicks off next month, MGM Resorts and Yahoo Sports will collaborate on exclusive live events, broadcast productions, and promotional marketing efforts.
The integration will launch in the Yahoo Sports app in November, with transactions to take place on the BetMGM platform. Gaming will be available in the state of New Jersey first, with plans for expansion over time. Early next year, the integration will launch on the Yahoo Fantasy app. This integration will be available in the U.S. for a variety of global sports, including the NBA, NHL, football, college sports, baseball, soccer, golf, and tennis.
“The historic partnership with Yahoo Sports and BetMGM will change the future of fandom, providing new ways for sports fans to go beyond engaging with content and interact through commerce,” said Verizon Media CEO Guru Gowrappan in making a joint announcement. “At Verizon Media, we believe in building products that connect consumers to their passions and drive the deepest end-to-end value possible.”
As part of this partnership, MGM Resorts and Yahoo Sports will collaborate on an array of content experiences, exclusive live events, and more than 20 high-profile major sports and promotional marketing efforts. MGM Resorts will also distribute Yahoo Sports content across its properties and platforms. Yahoo Sports will be hosting multiple-player events at MGM Resorts properties and will be an official Digital Media Sports Partner of MGM Resorts.
“This partnership marks an important moment for BetMGM in the growing U.S. sports-betting sector,” said MGM Resorts Chairmen/CEO Jim Murren. “Integrating Yahoo’s leading fantasy-sports operations and content with BetMGM’s world-class sports-betting and interactive platform uniquely positions us to drive market share and large-scale adoption among sports fans.”
The deal is expected to streamline Yahoo Sports users’ ability to make a wager via the platform, which attracts 60 million users a month and is heavily used by fantasy players. Yahoo Sports has also seen 68% growth in U.S. mobile-app visitors year-over-year.
“We have tens of millions of users engaging through Yahoo Sports and Yahoo Fantasy,” said Gowrappan. “Yahoo and BetMGM will provide fresh content and wagering opportunities, where legal, to Yahoo’s built-in fan base.”
The partnership continues to build on Verizon Media’s core strategy to connect its content directly to transactions — as Yahoo Sports has already done with its paid fantasy leagues and daily fantasy games.
“At Yahoo, we’re always looking at ways to reimagine and shape what the future looks like,” added Gowrappan. “We believe this is a very untapped opportunity in the industry, and, by combining Yahoo’s leadership in digital sports with BetMGM’s world-class betting platform, we are uniquely positioned to drive market share and large-scale adoption among sports fans.”
The deal marks the latest major sports-media outlet to dive into the sports-betting game following on the heels of Fox Sports (which launched Fox Bet with The Stars Group earlier this year), ESPN (partnering with Caesars Entertainment to launch a sports-betting–themed studio in Las Vegas), and others. Sinclair Broadcast Group, which acquired the former Fox Sports RSNs from Disney this year, is also expected to put a major emphasis on sports betting as more states legalize.
In the joint announcement, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman also chimed in on what the deal means for the industry.
“As sports betting continues to transform the industry, this partnership brings together the power of two trusted partners of the NBA,” said Silver. “By working together, MGM Resorts and Yahoo Sports will offer fans unprecedented ways to engage with our games.”
Said Bettman, “The expanding sports-betting landscape presents exciting opportunities to increase fan engagement and leverage emerging technologies. MGM Resorts, a valued partner of the NHL, along with Yahoo, a leading media brand, will connect fans to the action on the ice in new and innovative ways.”
MGM Resorts has partnered up with Yahoo to integrate their BetMGM sports betting product into the Yahoo Sports app as of November. Terms of the deal were not disclosed but it is believed that access will also be available through other Yahoo platforms at a later date.
Yahoo Partners Up with MGM
Yahoo Sports Betting App Yahoo
Verizon Media (owners of Yahoo since 2017) announced the multi-year partnership with MGM Resorts/GVC Holdings to integrate the BetMGM betting product into their Yahoo Sports app as of next month. Details of the agreement are scarce at the moment. The one thing that was made clear during the announcement is that Yahoo will serve as an official Digital Media Sports Partner of MGM Resorts.
Essentially Yahoo will serve as an 'affiliate' that steers traffic to BetMGM. All transactions will be handled by BetMGM. We do not yet know what type of financial compensation Yahoo will receive although we can guess it will be through either shared revenue or perhaps they will be paid per acquisition.
The wagering option will only be available where gambling is legal, of course. The Bet MGM app will also be limited to Nevada and New Jersey, which are the states where it is currently available. MGM is working on getting into the Indiana and West Virginia markets as well but are not up and running there as yet. For customers located in other states, they will be directed to the free games and fantasy type products that they have available.
This is a North American Facing Deal
This partnership is exclusive to the United States and will include all of the major North American professional sports as well as college. Part of the deal will see MGM distribute Yahoo Sports content across their properties while Yahoo Sports will host player events at MGM Resorts properties.
Yahoo Betting Lines
The commissioners from both the NBA and NHL have expressed their enthusiasm over the deal. Both leagues currently have deals with MGM Resorts which is why they have commented while the other pro leagues haven't made any official statement even though the deal clearly benefits all parties.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver stated 'As sports betting continues to transform the industry, this partnership brings together the power of two trusted partners of the NBA,'. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman for his part had said the following 'MGM Resorts, a valued partner for the NHL, along with Yahoo, a leading media brand, will connect fans to the action on the ice in new innovative ways.'
The Reasons This Deal Makes Sense for Both MGM and Yahoo
Yahoo launched its daily fantasy platform back in 2015. They have clearly seen what FanDuel and DraftKings have been up to in the legal sports betting market and want in. While they will
not have their own sportsbook, they will be able to capitalize on the millions of active users they have through their daily fantasy sports app. Those customers are far more likely to be interested in sports betting than the average person.
As for BetMGM, they benefit from the branding opportunity that Yahoo Sports provides. With this deal, they will get the exclusive right to advertise to those millions of Yahoo Sports customers while preventing their rivals from doing the same. The fact that FanDuel is the sports betting king in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the two states that have benefited the most from PASPA being struck down, has not gone unnoticed by Yahoo Sports.
Yahoo Sports Betting App Chat
We can assume this deal is similar to the one that happened recently between Fox Sports and the Stars Group. This latest partnership is just another example of how media companies see big-time profits to be had in the growing legal sports betting market in the United States.