CBS Sports, William Hill Sports Book announce official partnership

[Steve Timko]

Sports betting used to be swept under the rug, save for Jimmy the Greek on CBS. How times have changed now it is fully embraced.

https://www.cbssports.com/general/news/cbs-sports-william-hill-sports-book-announce-official-partnership/ 

[Bob Jersey]

Steve Timko, today (2/11):

Sports betting used to be swept under the rug, save for Jimmy the Greek on CBS. How times have changed now it is fully embraced.

https://www.cbssports.com/general/news/cbs-sports-william-hill-sports-book-announce-official-partnership/ 

The legal version, taxed by states and monitored by the sports involved, was kept down for years by Federal legislators who conveniently ignored the 10th Amendment, till SCOTUS opened the doors to it only in 2018... https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/05/14/supreme-court-strikes-down-ban-sports-betting-new-jersey/1053022001/ (link)

B

[Tom Wolper]

Even when illegal, gambling was a huge driver of the NFL. Betting lines have been on the sports page of my local paper for decades. When it became legal the big money gambling companies were inevitably going to put up lots and lots of money to associate themselves with major league sports. The wink and a nod to gambling in the past will seem quaint when the full out marketing blitz takes over live sports broadcasts.

When cannabis is legalized nationally I expect to see a similar media saturation with advertising for product, edibles, and paraphernalia.

[John Edwards]

Gambling, for sure. Once it's legalized nationally, you won't be able to go 5 seconds at a sporting event (there or on TV) without seeing something from Bet365, William Hill, Ladbrokes, etc. (Other gambling sites are available.)

Cannabis, I'm not as sure about, though. It's been legal in Canada for just over a year now, and I haven't seen a lot of movement in the sponsorship area. Some of it may be that the industry is fairly tightly regulated (so sponsorship may not be legal, I don't know - tobacco companies were banned years ago from sports sponsorship), but the only thing close that I've seen is that a Toronto-based rugby team has a CBD oil company that is owned by the same group as its shirt sponsor.

John

--

John Edwards
"You can insure against the weather, but you can't insure against incompetence, can you?" - Phil Tufnell

[Tom Wolper]

I was unclear in what I wrote. When I mentioned cannabis advertising I meant in general, not specific to sports. The analogy I was trying to make was that when sports gambling was illegal it was only referred to indirectly in the papers and sports broadcasts. When it became legal the gambling companies have blanketed sports media with ads. Cannabis may have lost its stigma but direct references to it and its use are still infrequent. When it becomes legal our media will be blanketed with cannabis advertising.