Football Bets Could Top $20B in Upcoming Season

With sports betting becoming legal or more accessible in new states, there is little doubt that the 2021 football season will set a record for wagers placed. 

Bettors could place over $20 billion in football-related wagers this season, resulting in $1.5 billion in revenue for sportsbooks, according to industry analyst PlayUSA.

• PlayUSA projects at least $12 billion in NFL-related bets, excluding parlay bets, yielding at least $800 million in sportsbook revenue.
• It also predicts at least $8 billion in non-parlay college football bets, bringing $550 million to sportsbooks.
• The Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl are partnering with Caesars Entertainment this year as college football warms to sports betting. The NFL has deals with most major American sportsbooks.

Virginia and Michigan opened to sports betting in January, Arizona is expected to launch sports betting in September, and mobile betting kicks off in New York at the start of 2022.

Football betting could push major sportsbooks toward profitability. 

DraftKings lost $305.5 million in the second quarter, despite revenue nearly tripling year-over-year. Caesars’ sports betting and online gaming division lost $22 million in Q2. FanDuel parent Flutter Entertainment doesn’t expect its U.S. division to turn a profit until 2023.

Editor’s note: DraftKings is an FOS partner.