Similar to college bowl season when underdogs were making people money, the NFL playoff betting is off to the same start. Not only are the dogs 4-2 ATS so far, but it’s also not looking good for our favorites in the next round if history is any indicator. Meanwhile, in other sports gambling news, the North Carolina governor is dangling a carrot for all of us bettors.
He is targeting the NCAA Tournament for the start of the sports gambling madness in the Tar Heel State. Finally, Delaware had one of the quietest launches of mobile sports betting, while New Jersey bettors are helping the casinos.
Sports Betting News: NFL Playoffs Going To The Dogs; North Carolina Targets NCAA Tournament For Mobile Betting
The NFL playoffs are off to a great start for the underdogs.
The dogs went 3-3 straight up and 4-2 against the spread in the Wild Card Round. Will the trend continue during the Divisional Round? According to DraftKings, here are the spreads for this playoff weekend:
Baltimore -9.5 vs Houston
San Francisco -10 vs Green Bay
Detroit -6 vs Tampa Bay
Buffalo -2.5 vs Kansas City
BetMGM released an early number on Tuesday, and it looks like the public is continuing to look to the underdogs. The Packers at +375 are the most bet underdog to win in the Divisional Round, with 86% of bets on Green Bay in the upset.
Meanwhile, 71% of the ATS bets are on the Packers, while that same percentage of bets are on the Texans to cover against the AFC’s top seed Baltimore.
The public isn’t only riding the underdogs. Cinderella is also popular, with 67% of the bets on the Lions to cover against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Another interesting note: since 2003, teams coming off the bye are 32-41-1 ATS in the Divisional Round. Finally, Lamar Jackson as a 7+ point favorite is 1-9 ATS in the last three years.
Sounds like a few more reasons to take a couple of dogs this weekend.
North Carolina Targets NCAA Tournament For Mobile Sports Betting
Sorry NFL playoff fans, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is targeting the start of the NCAA Tournament as the launch date for online sports betting.
Cooper signed mobile sports betting into law back in June of 2023. The state’s lottery commission has been working on a start date since. They have a meeting scheduled for Wednesday. There is no word if an announcement will be made on Wednesday, but we do know that the launch won’t be in time for the Super Bowl on Feb. 11.
“The idea is to try to get it in place before March Madness,” Gov. Cooper told reporters after Tuesday morning’s Council of State meeting in Raleigh. “There’s a lot going on at the Lottery Commission to make sure that that process goes the right way.”
All of the major sportsbooks have partnerships in place already with the sports teams and sporting events in the state. It’s expected they will be ready to go live when North Carolina waives the green flag.
First and second-round NCAA Tournament games will be played in Charlotte, so it makes sense to have everything running by then.
Delaware Opens Mobile Sports Betting
Back in 2018, Delaware was the first state other than Nevada to allow sports betting. Gov. John Carney celebrated by being the first person to place a bet. It was a $10 wager on the Philadelphia Phillies.
Since that point, Delaware only allowed in-person sports betting at one of its two casinos. Earlier this month, however, Delaware finally joined the growing list of states to permit mobile sports betting.
There weren’t any celebratory bets placed by any celebrities or local politicians, not even by President Joe Biden, who hails from the state and cared enough to place a wager.
The announcement was rather underwhelming, and the Delaware Lottery’s decision to only allow one mobile operator didn’t have many sportsbooks running to the state.
The mobile sportsbook operator is Rush Street Interactive, which operates brands like BetRivers, PlaySugarHouse, and RushBet, and has a five-year contract.
“We are thrilled to begin this historic and much-anticipated launch of the new online sportsbook and casino with the Delaware Lottery and bring our award-winning product to Delaware,” said Richard Schwartz, CEO of RSI, in a statement.
“With our extensive offering of gaming content, a wide range of deposit and withdrawal methods, real-time cash-out approvals, and best-in-class customer service, Delaware customers are going to love the convenience of wagering on their favorite sports, slots, and table games from anywhere in the state.”
It hasn’t been estimated how much more money the state will see from mobile sports betting. However, Delaware took in $82.4 million in handle and $7 million in revenue back in 2022. Updated numbers for 2023 were not available.
New Jersey Sets A Betting Record
Delaware’s neighbors to the north recently released their 2023 revenue numbers. According to an article by the Associated Press, New Jersey’s casino and sports betting operators and their online partners won nearly $5.8 billion in 2023. That’s an increase of nearly 11% and set a new record.
Unlike Delaware, New Jersey allows upwards of 30 mobile sportsbook operators in addition to in-person betting at the casinos.
The article went on to say that sports betting brought in over $1 billion in revenue on nearly $12 billion worth of bets placed by gamblers after winning bets and other expenses were paid.
It was also reported that in-casino revenue was down as a whole. It seems like most people enjoy placing bets or gambling from their phones on the beach or house.