MGM Resorts International, the casino company that has been feverishly striking sports betting deals with major leagues and teams, is reportedly eyeing plans to test sports betting kiosks at Vegas Golden Knights games at T-Mobile Arena.
MGM Resorts International Chairman and CEO Jim Murren initially announced that MGM was looking to test kiosks at T-Mobile Arena, which it owns alongside AEG, within a year, according to a set of tweets by ESPN reporters Darren Rovell and David Payne Purdum from the ICE Sports Betting conference in New York City Wednesday morning.
JUST IN: @MGMResortsIntl chairman and CEO Jim Murren says MGM will test sports betting kiosks at Vegas Golden Knights games this season. MGM owns T-Mobile Arena with AEG.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) November 28, 2018
Two hours later, however, Rovell issued a clarification tweet indicating Murren had apparently misspoke:
Clarification from MGM CEO Jim Murren on having betting kiosks at Golden Knights games. Not so fast. There are no plans to do that yet.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) November 28, 2018
Either way, the tweets signal that MGM is looking to leverage its ownership of T-Mobile Arena, proximity to the Golden Knights, and sports betting relationship with the NHL, to potentially offer new sports betting products and services to fans.
MGM entered into a sports betting partnership with the NHL at the end of October, marking the first time a gaming company had teamed up with the league and earning MGM the title as the league’s first official sports betting partner. As part of that deal, MGM was offered access to “previously unseen enhanced NHL proprietary game data,” such as real-time advanced game tracking.
The NHL is currently developing a system to track in-game data and has previously revealed ambitions to put sensors in hockey pucks. The organizations said their partnership would allow MGM to provide specialized NHL game insights and unlock new betting opportunities for U.S customers in places such as Nevada, where sports betting is legal.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman previously referred to the partnership as “a broad, encompassing relationship between two powerful brands.”
“The new sports betting landscape presents a unique opportunity for fan engagement utilizing technology and data that are exclusive to our League,” he said. “Fan engagement, technological advancement and innovation are paramount to our progressive approach and will be at the forefront of everything we do.”
MGM has been ahead of other Vegas-based gaming companies in the sports betting space. The company has snapped up a number of rights, including a betting deal with the NBA and another gambling data partnership with MLB, since the Supreme Court green lighted sports betting earlier this year.
SportTechie Takeaway
Sports betting kiosks would offer fans attending games live in person an opportunity to place bets at the venue where the action is taking place. That might potentially serve as another attraction point to lure fans in to watch games live, compared with on television or at a bar. However, the growth of mobile betting technology might make physical kiosks unneeded.
In places such as Britain, where sports gambling has been legal for years, in-venue betting is already a common practice for popular leagues such as the English Premier League. Betting giant William Hill, for example, has an expansive in-venue betting deal that includes betting booths with BD Stadia. Their deals spans a number of EPL teams, including Stoke City.