SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The interlinking nature of betting and media is nothing new, though in the still relatively young markets of the US it certainly feels that way to many sports consumers, who are now seeing widespread gambling advertising and promotions for the first time.
Integrating betting lines and content into sports media has proliferated in the US in the wake of the PASPA repeal in 2018, the years following which have seen regulated betting markets launched across 38 states. As its market develops, some have been asking what the US can learn from its contemporaries, like the UK, when it comes to betting-media integration.
In the words of Stuart Simms, CEO of betting media and affiliate group FairPlay Sports Media (FPSM), the parent company of Oddschecker, the answer is very simple – ‘Not much!’ he explained to SBC News/Insider Sport when asked this question.
“The US market is already open to maximising media-betting engagement. Betting is deeply integrated in UK/European tradition and sports viewing, and this can mean behaviours and perceptions are hard to change,” he says, speaking to SBC News ahead of his appearance at the SBC Summit America in Florida later this year.
“The US, on the other hand, is reaping the rewards from best practices elsewhere and its own maturing betting market that’s seen very much as a complement to the entertainment at hand.”
New world, same worries?
The UK has certainly proven a source of inspiration in some elements of US betting, such as many stakeholders referencing Sky Bet as an ideal business model to follow. Penn Entertainment’s ESPN Bet is arguably the best example of an attempt to directly mirror the Sky Bet model for American audiences.
However, in the opinion of observers like Simms, the integration of betting into sports media is not an area where the US has had to look to its more established British counterparts for inspiration – in fact, it is the US that is leading the charge.
American consumers have a ‘visible hunger’ for betting insights and data which has naturally driven demand for such content, he says. The limited restrictions on data capture and usage in the US compared to in Europe and the UK further complement this.
“With the added historical national exposure to fantasy sports and similar offerings, the US should continue to pioneer its own relationship with betting content. I am excited to see what is possible,” Simms adds.
The US may be leading the way regarding betting-media convergence, but it is unlikely that Britain and other European markets will be following its lead any time soon. Focusing on the UK, policymakers, sports fans and campaigners are becoming increasingly frustrated with betting’s public visibility.
Football’s relationship with the industry has particularly felt the pressure from this, with the Premier league opting to remove front-of-shirt betting sponsors from the 2026/27 season onwards.
As betting’s visibility in the US continues to climb, with often very brash breakdowns of betting odds and in-play trading featuring on sports broadcasts, the question of whether American consumers and policymakers will also get fed up with a perceived bombardment of betting content raises its head.
Simms argues that this will only occur if consumers are not given a choice. Content also must be as diverse as possible, he says, with betting broadcasts which focus only on the odds something “of the past not the future”.
“We are arguing that consumers will have more choice, and that data visualisation will become more and more integral to the live sports experience, no matter where or how they watch it,” he says.
“Regulators, federations and the media companies themselves will all have a say on what is possible and appropriate, but ultimately consumer demand and action will determine the right amount of information and data.”
FPSM finding its foothold
The US’ sporting sector is home to five of the world’s 10 most valuable sports leagues – the National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA), Major League Baseball (MLB), National Hockey League (NHL) and Major League Soccer (MLS).
Meanwhile, the country is also home to a mulit-billion dollar media industry and a multi-billion dollar betting industry. Sports media streaming and TV rights amounted to around $30bn in 2024, while gross gaming revenue peaked at a record $71bn at the end of 2024 according to the American Gaming Association (AGA).
With such high value and growth potential in both sectors, the increasing interlinks between the two were always inevitable, especially given how much betting benefits from a good relationship and visibility in sports.
Having recognised what it believes is the US leading role in betting-media integration moving forward, FairPlay Sports Media (FPSM) is confident it too will be able to play a leading role within America’s rapidly developing scene.
“We have been working with sports media companies for many years, whether under the ownership of Flutter or more recently Bruin,” Simms concludes.
“Historically our real-time, low latency odds have been a key part of our services and more latterly we have enhanced this with predictive AI. Beyond this FairPlay AI has many non-betting user cases that are in flight and yet to launch.
“Two key areas drive our future thinking, how to personalise fan experiences and increase the relevance and therefore engagement, secondly how do we fully utilise and evolve new user experiences using large language models and our proprietary data sets.”
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