A sportsbook is coming to Cardinals' stadium, as NFL team announces partnership with BetMGM
There will be a sportsbook in an NFL stadium for the start of the 2022 season. For anyone who knows the history of the NFL and sports betting, that's a dizzying step that nobody would have ever imagined just a few years ago.
The Arizona Cardinals announced a partnership with BetMGM and Gila River Hotels & Casinos for retail and online sports betting.
News!
We're excited to announce our partnership with @AZCardinals and @PlayAtGila.
Sports betting is coming to Arizona 🌵 pic.twitter.com/x3J5vMhvdr— BetMGM 🦁 (@BetMGM) August 9, 2021
The most interesting part of the announcement was that BetMGM "plans to open retail sportsbooks at the three Arizona Gila River properties and at State Farm Stadium, home of the Cardinals."
The plan is for the sportsbook to open inside State Farm Stadium for the 2022 season. That's the first time an NFL team has announced plans for a sportsbook in the stadium.
"This is a tremendous opportunity to build upon our long-standing relationship with Gila River and launch a new one with BetMGM," Arizona Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill said in a release. "They are best-in-class partners whose excellence and expertise in this emerging space will provide a new and innovative way to engage and interact with our fans."
English soccer fans won't be shocked by this news, because they're accustomed to betting at the stadium, but it's a new step for the NFL. Before the U.S. Supreme Court allowed states to decide whether to legalize sports betting, the NFL fought betting at every turn. The NFL was slow to embrace betting even as many states adopted new laws to make it legal. Now the league has done a complete turn and is fully embracing it.
The latest step is a sportsbook at the Cardinals' stadium. It likely won't be the last NFL stadium to have one.
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