Super Bowl betting warning
Tennessee’s Sports Wagering Council (SWAC) has issued a stark warning to bettors ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles.
use offshore sportsbooks at their peril
According to state-oriented media, SWAC is advising bettors in the US’s largest online-only legal sports betting market to use offshore sportsbooks at their peril. SWAC Director of Engagement David Smith issued the warning against using the “more popular offshore books” according to WATE 6.
Smith even went as far as naming MyBookie.ag, BetOnline.ag, BetUS.com.pa, and Sportsbetting.ag. He also warned some of the sites were endorsed by pro athletes.
Name and shame?
Smith stated that, of the sportsbooks he named which were most popular with Tennesseans, SWAC research has revealed “they don’t offer some of the consumer protections.”
Smith added some sites are marketed using pro athletes “so to the naked eye, it’s not some HTML website that you’re wagering through.”
bets on “a coin toss or […] the color of the Gatorade” are illegal
The SWAC exec laid it out in plainer terms. Smith said that bets “on a coin toss or […] the color of the Gatorade” are illegal bets only offered by offshore operators.”
Local media cites the Council as warning bettors to wager legally via the 12 regulated sportsbooks in Tennessee, the US’s biggest online-only sports betting market with $4.5bn a year wagered. Smith said if bettors were wagering on the Super Bowl, they should do so legally via licensed operators including FanDuel, DraftKings, and Action24.
The SWAC exec said the regulated sites offered important user protections. He described these as “holding reserves to make sure they can pay you when you win and keeping your personal information secure.”
SWAC cracks whip
The Tennessee regulator’s name and shame approach to NFL offshore betting reflects SWAC’s all-out war on the unlicensed online vertical.
In October, Tennessee became the first US state to go beyond issuing cease-and-desist letters to offshore iGaming operator Bovada and hit it with a $50,000 fine for flaunting state gaming regulations.
At the time, SWAC said it was “pursuing every available remedy to eliminate illegal sportsbooks from Tennessee.”
Ahead of Super Bowl LIX, the SWAC reinforced its message to bettors. Namely, to understand their wagers and “be willing to wager money that you’re willing to lose,” while also enjoying the experience without chasing losses.
“We just want to make sure if people do choose to do this, that they aren’t doing it as a form of entertainment,” Smith added.