Expect to See Six Sportsbook Commercials Per Game This NFL Season
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Football is back, which means action-packed matchups, nail-biting finishes, and, of course, plenty of advertisements. Not even counting Super Bowl LV, the NFL accumulated approximately $3.3 billion in ad revenue last season. Well, some of those dollars are definitely going to be coming from sportsbooks now, as the NFL has announced their limits on sports betting commercials for the year. Here’s what you need to know about sports betting ads as we prepare to kick off a brand new NFL season.
SportsBooks Get Six Spots Per NFL Game
If sports fans weren’t aware of the rise of sports wagering before, you can bet they’ll be fully educated as the NFL season gets going. It’s been announced that 2021 NFL games will air up to six commercial spots for sportsbooks per game. If that number seems small, it’s only because of the limit the NFL has imposed for the season. The limits are seemingly reflective of the NFL not wanting to alienate fans that have no interest in sports betting, as well as trying to avoid overloading customers as we saw years ago when daily fantasy sports platforms made their mark.
The expected commercials for the NFL season show that not only are sportsbooks ramping up their ad campaigns with growing sports betting legalization but that every platform is in a massive competition in a rapidly growing field. This competition means that sports betting commercials are going to become commonplace sooner rather than later. So, when you’re watching the NFL kickoff game tonight, don’t be too shocked when you see an ad for BetMGM promos or PointsBet odds boosts.
Sportsbook Ad Dollars Are On the Rise
These major sportsbooks aren’t cheaping out when it comes to their advertisements. WynnBET is investing heavily in their growth, with a $100 million ad campaign planned for the 2021 NFL season. Just last year, FanDuel and DraftKings spent a combined $311 million on TV ads. In the first quarter of 2021 alone, sportsbooks spent $154 million on advertisements, way up from the $10.7 million from 2019.
And don’t expect these ad dollars to plateau any time soon. The 2020 sports betting market in the U.S. alone saw $1 billion in revenue, relatively low when you consider some have projected $6 billion by the year 2023. Sports betting, and its many commercials, are here to stay.
Four SportsBooks Have Partnered With NFL
If advertising agreements didn’t show you that the NFL is embracing sports betting, the recent deals between the NFL and major sportsbooks should show you they’ve changed their mind. At the end of August, the NFL officially approved partnerships with four sportsbooks: BetMGM PointsBet, WynnBET, and Fox Bet. In addition to the four books now able to purchase the aforementioned commercial spots, they’ll also have additional NFL media collaborations we will see as the season progresses.
While not one of the four books partnered with the NFL, Caesars Sportsbook has been one of the most active when it comes to NFL collaborations, between their individual agreements with teams like the Arizona Cardinals and even getting the naming rights to the Caesars Superdome, home of the New Orleans Saints.
