Update: The NFL and Caesars have signed a deal; story here.
Just last week, the news surfaced that the NFL was looking for a national casino partner.
Now, it appears close to finding one.
A source familiar with negotiations tells Legal Sports Report that the NFL and Caesars Entertainment Corporation are getting close to inking such a deal.
The terms and scope of the deal under negotiation are unknown.
If the deal is cemented, it would the league’s first overarching deal with a company involved in gaming.
Caesars and the NFL?
The potential deal would be the latest as Caesars and individual NFL teams have been piling up partnerships:
- Horseshoe Baltimore and the Baltimore Ravens.
- Harrah’s New Orleans and the New Orleans Saints.
- Caesars is a founding partner of the stadium that is being built for the Las Vegas Raiders.
The New York Jets (MGM, 888) and the Dallas Cowboys (WinStar) have signed deals with gaming companies, as well, in recent months.
The NFL’s sudden interest in sponsorship or partnership deals with casinos comes after the federal ban on single-game wagering outside of Nevada was struck down this spring.
Caesars, not MGM?
Many believed the NFL’s desire to find a casino partner that would result in a deal struck with MGM Resorts International.
MGM already has gaming deals in place with the three other major North American pro sports leagues — the NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball.
Of course, if the Caesars deal is not an exclusive one, it still could leave room for MGM.
Caesars, sports betting and a national footprint
Caesars is one of the companies at the forefront of the sports betting revolution in the US.
It already operated sports betting in Nevada; it also has two retail sportsbooks in Atlantic City and a New Jersey sports betting app, as well as sportsbooks at its properties in Mississippi. It will also have a sportsbook at its Pennsylvania property, Harrah’s Philadelphia.
Caesars operates properties in 13 states, including several that may legalize sports gambling in the coming years.