Earlier on Wednesday the American Gaming Association released their statement on how much money they believed would be wagered on Superbowl 50.  The amounts are absolutely staggering not just in total but how much of this takes place illegally.  Here’s their complete press released with an explanation on how they arrived at their estimates. Washington, DC – According to an estimate released today by the American Gaming Association (AGA), Americans will bet $4.2 billion on Super Bowl 50 between the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers, up eight percent over last year. Nearly 97 percent of those bets — $4.1 billion worth — will be wagered illegally, standing in stark contrast to the approximately $115 million bet legally on the New England Patriots-Seattle Seahawks game last year. In fact, the illegal market is 35 times greater than the legal marketplace. INFOGRAPHIC: Americans to Bet $4.2B on Super Bowl 50 “As Americans celebrate a milestone Super Bowl, they’ll also bet a record amount on the Big Game,” said Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the AGA. “Just like football, sports betting has never been more popular than it is today. The casino gaming industry is leading the conversation around a new approach to sports betting that enhances consumer protections, strengthens the integrity of games and recognizes fans’ desire for greater engagement with sports.” Overall, AGA’s estimate found that Americans wagered $149 billion on sports in 2015, up from nearly $145 billion in 2014. Before last January’s Patriots-Seahawks Super Bowl, AGA released its first-ever estimate predicting fans would wager $3.8 billion worth of illegal bets on the title game. Late last year, following months of study and deliberation, AGA’s Board of Directors issued a set of recommendations that marked a major shift in the industry’s approach to sports betting. AGA is building a broad...

Our favorite Premier League Insider shares his thoughts on the full slate of fixtures for this coming weekend. As always you can see more of Jimmy’s work here or listen to his podcast here Norwich City v Liverpool Liverpool -0.5 and 2.5 goals It was 1-1 on Merseyside back in September but prior to that it was 5-0 to over 2.5 goals since April 2012 and four of those went over 4.5 goals. The signing of Stephen Naismith intrigues me for Norwich as since he was left out by Everton they have become far easier to play against. I think it’s a very astute signing as he is a little rat of a player and he could help ignite a survival bid for the Canaries. I will stick with the trends here and grab a bit of over 2.5 goals. Crystal Palace v Tottenham Hotspur Spurs -0.25 and 2.25 goals When you don’t score a goal in five games it’s pretty hard to get any points from games. Worrying times for Palace and without a genuine star striker to end this run their confidence is in danger of continuing on this downward spiral. It doesn’t help when your keeper starts allowing shots to go in that your grandmother could save! Palace won this game 2-1 last season but at present its hard to see them scoring the two goals in a game that they will probably need to beat this in form Tottenham side. I really like Spurs in this spot. Leicester City v Stoke City Leicester -0.5 and 2.25 goals You all know that after a long time on the sidelines I hopped well and truly on the Leicester bus about seven weeks ago. However, there are signs that their challenge is beginning...

It’s championship weekend bitches!!!!  There may be only two games worth discussing but PayneInsider was in playoff form with his analysis of both including a best bet opportunity.  Dave Mason had some major news not only about how last weekend unfolded at his shop but in how betting patterns are emerging for this high profile Broncos vs Patriots clash.  Sit down, strap in, and be prepared for a magical NFL journey.  Don’t worry, we also made time for a brief Oscars respite and some quick flick reccos. Listen to the podcast here every week or subscribe on SOUND CLOUD and ITUNES Still looking for an offshore option? BetOnline has special offers just for our...

We all go through a process as sports bettors. It takes time to learn the tricks of the trade from building a bankroll to managing our money to mastering a vernacular entirely it’s own.  Like other valuable life skills there’s a crawling process before walking that  ultimately leads to a full blown sprint if you’re lucky. These articles may or may not be autobiographical however if you spent the time to read this and recognize with where I’m coming from you’re in absolutely no position to judge. 10) Remembering major life milestones are recalled by the exact bets you made that day. 9) Rooting for favorite childhood teams is no longer possible because the new coach doesn’t cover the number more than 52% of the time. 8) Social calendars are disregarded in order to accommodate any in-game betting opportunity that presents itself. 7) Sending money to Hector Gonzalez in Belize City, Belize happened as frequently during college as depositing into your savings account.  There’s also a good chance the money you intended to grow for use on a Spring Break trip vanished when an obscure sportsbook closed its doors. 6) Dating season is limited to 6 weeks in the middle of summer. If a girl isn’t in love by the time football season starts odds of making the relationship work long term slip below 15%. 5) In reference to real world purchases you’ve applied the term units, nickels, or dimes often confusing sales people.  After all, financial decisions are governed by “how many bets” it will take to pay something off: movies, dinners, cars, etc… 4) Your bookie was in your wedding party 3) Every website you visit at the office is blocked by your employer Don’t believe this happens regularly? Click here submitted...

Every oddsmaker handles major injuries differently, especially in the NFL.  Eventually the market settles on a number as wagering dollars flood into books.  This time of year keeping a game off the board for an extended period of time is revenue lost. However books need to balance the risk reward of hanging a price that might not correctly reflect the health of key contributors.  One of the largest offshore books waited until Friday to hang a price on Steelers vs Broncos; here are the thoughts of Shane Catford, head oddsmaker at Bookmaker, on establishing the proper line for Steelers @ Broncos. Another Ben Roethlisberger injury, and another delayed opening line. We just couldn’t expose ourselves by putting up a bad number without all of the necessary information. Big Ben is in the same tier as Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers when it comes to value to a point spread or total. He’s worth minimum seven points to a spread. Prior to the Wild Card Round, our team was targeting a 4-point spread for a potential Pittsburgh-Denver matchup. Of course, everything changed once Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown were injured. If both Roethlisberger and Brown weren’t able to play, we’re looking at a 13- or 14-point spread. Once our sources were confident Big Ben was going to give it a go, we opened the line at Broncos -7. We obviously couldn’t use the initial line because of Roethlisberger’s playing condition and Brown’s availability. There aren’t many skill players other than quarterbacks that have enough value in our eyes to impact a line, but Antonio Brown does. He’s such a vital piece of their offensive scheme so we value him at 1-2 points, depending on the opponent. It remains to be seen how limited Roethlisberger will be...

Enough of the nostalgia associated with the FA Cup; it’s back to the basics for English football at it’s highest level.  James Kempton is here with complete fixture analysis to get your wallet right for the weekend Click here to listen to his podcast Tottenham Hotspur v Sunderland Tottenham Hotspur -1.5 and 2.75 goals Spurs are unbeaten in the last eleven EPL meetings of the sides but interstingly only one of their eight wins was by more than one goal. Given those trends it’s hard to stomach the handicap line for Spurs in this game. If Spurs score early like Man City did at home to Sunderland it could get ugly. A pass for me though. Bournemouth v Norwich City Bournemouth -0.5 and 2.5 goals The Canaries won 3-1 in Norwich back in September and last season they avoided defeat in both games against Bournemouth including a 2-1 win on the south coast.  Bournemouth were priced up at minus half a goal for this midweeks game at home to West Ham. The line is priced the same here when they host a far inferior opponent than the Hammers and that puzzles me. After that loss though to West Ham maybe this is a fairer priced line for two teams I just can’t trust. Chelsea v Everton Chelsea -0.75 and 2.5 goals Quiz time! Name me the scorer of the last winning goal in EPL action for Everton at Stamford Bridge? It was Paul Rideout and it was November 1994. Some strong Everton teams have travelled to the capital to take on Chelsea in the last twenty years and none have come away victorious. Nothing I’ve seen from this lightweight Everton team makes me think they will head north with all three points but can...

It’s time…we’re playing for keeps.  The best NFL podcast on the internet hits the ground running with analysis from PayneInsider, Dave Mason, and yours truly...

The schedule makes have given us all a treat with mid-week fixtures in the EPL.  After some crazy results in the FA Cup over the weekend, the biggest clubs in England return to league play and James Kempton is here to break it all down Aston Villa v Crystal Palace Pk and 2.25 goals I find it extremely unlikely that this very well organised Palace side lose this game as they are 6-3-2 overall against the bottom half. Villa are atrocious but they always seem to get the benefit of the doubt from the books in terms of their pricing for home games. They haven’t won since the first day of the season so what makes anyone think they grab a victory here? Some good value on Palace on the Pk line. Bournemouth v West Ham United Bournemouth -0.5 and 2.5 goals The Hammers are an overall 3-6-1 against bottom half placed teams this season. Here they travel to the south coast and a point would be a good result for both teams given the home teams plight. Bournemouth are just 2-4-5 against top half teams and with West Ham losing just two of their last seventeen league matches I cannot see any reason why they are priced at plus half a goal. I really like West Ham here in this spot. Newcastle United v Manchester United Manchester United -0.5 and 2.25 goals This game evokes memories of that 5-1 Newcastle win in the mid 1990s and the famous Phillipe Albert chip over a rooted Peter Schmeical. However, I’m not sure this game will have six chances let alone six goals! Man Utd have won their last three trips to St James’ Park to nil and I’m sure that’ll be the plan for LVG...

We’ve yet to crown a Super Bowl 50 champion yet but that doesn’t stop oddsmakers from looking towards the future.  Here’s a complete list of Super Bowl 51 futures prices released earlier this morning by the Westgate Superbook 2017 SUPER BOWL LI @ NRG STADIUM, HOUSTON, TEXAS SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2017 SUPER BOWL   SEAHAWKS 8 PATRIOTS 8 STEELERS 8 PACKERS 10 CARDINALS 10 BENGALS 12 COWBOYS 14 PANTHERS 12 BRONCOS 20 VIKINGS 20 COLTS 20 CHIEFS 20 FALCONS 40 JETS 30 BILLS 30 RAVENS 30 TEXANS 40 GIANTS 40 REDSKINS 40 EAGLES 40 BEARS 40 LIONS 40 SAINTS 40 BUCS 50 RAMS 50 DOLPHINS 50 TITANS 50 JAGUARS 50 RAIDERS 50 CHARGERS 50 49ERS 60 BROWNS 200 NFC  CONFERENCE     SEAHAWKS 4 PACKERS  5 CARDINALS 5 COWBOYS 7 PANTHERS 6 VIKINGS 10 FALCONS 20 GIANTS 20 REDSKINS 20 EAGLES 20 BEARS 20 LIONS 20 SAINTS 20 BUCS 25 RAMS 25 49ERS 30 AFC CONFERENCE       PATRIOTS 7-2 STEELERS 7-2 BENGALS 5 BRONCOS 9 COLTS 9 CHIEFS 9 JETS 15 BILLS 15 RAVENS 15 TEXANS 20 DOLPHINS 25 TITANS 25 JAGUARS 25 RAIDERS 25 CHARGERS 25 BROWNS...

The regular season is officially in the books and with that the unfortunate sobering reality is only 11 meaningful NFL games remain this season.  Normal temptation is to fire on every single one of them to get the football fix before we put the pigskin away until August.  Both  PayneInsider and I found the Wildcard slate to be pretty challenging but it didn’t stop us from sharing plenty of great information.  Dave Mason also offered up some great nuggets on what the book needs will be for the weekend and explained why they opened the Seahawks -2.5 vs the Vikings. Listen to the podcast here every week or subscribe on SOUND CLOUD and ITUNES Still looking for an offshore option? BetOnline has special offers just for our...

They say you’ll always remember your first. Whether it’s a first kiss, first bet, first love, or first arrest the memory is seared into your brain for eternity. This past Saturday during the Valero Alamo Bowl I witnessed college football history. No, it wasn’t TCU’s historic bowl comeback down 31 points that punctuated a boring bowl season I’m referencing but rather a gambling moose of epic proportions, live and uncensored, a mere meet in front of my face.  This is my cautionary tale of gambling gone astray… Working as a handicapper/journalist covering sports from a gambling perspective precludes me from going to a lot of games.  Little to say when PayneInsider hit me up asking if I’d be interested in going to the college football playoff game in Dallas followed by the Alamo Bowl both in a 48 hour span I jumped at the chance. With itinerary booked and our gracious host Jose arranging all the proper ticket arrangements I became a kid in a candy store anxious to take in live college football played at its highest level.  If only I’d known ahead of time the deal I was making with the devil… Fast forward to the morning of New Year’s eve…comfortably dreaming about winners in my room at the Grand Hyatt San Antonio when I was jolted awake by a phone that wouldn’t stop ringing. Friends, gambling colleagues, twitter; you name it everyone was going crazy with the news that unfolded hours before just a few blocks from the hotel. TCU all everything quarterback Trevone Boykin had been involved in some sort of altercation placing his status for the game very much in jeopardy. For the briefest of moments I was pissed; how could the player I most wanted to see live...

The start of a new year gives everyone a chance to reflect on the year that was while also making promises to become better versions of ourselves.  Some of us say we’ll be nicer to our family, others say living a healthier lifestyle needs to become a priority, and there’s even a segment of the population that vows to put in longer hours at the office. The unfortunate reality is after a few short weeks we find ourselves mired in the same bad habits that have become as much a part of our daily lives as air and water. As sports gamblers I think it’s equally as important to force yourself to try new things outside of the comfort zone to take your handicapping to the next level. Here’s my list of New Year’s resolutions for the recreational bettor…that even the most hardened veteran can learn from too. Keep an accurate accounting of your bets Whether you find yourself betting $5 a game or $5,000, keep tabs on where that gambling money is going. The best bettors know exactly what their ROI, win percentage, and average juice looks like at all times. The brain is funny, it allows us to remember only what we want to including fictitious levels of sports betting success. I know there’s nothing more difficult than logging losing wagers during a rough patch but doing so allows all of us to identify strengths and weaknesses as handicappers. I always tell people just getting started in this business to set realistic expectations; you’re going to lose before you win and establishing an annual track record of success takes time. There’s nothing wrong with viewing sports betting as viable entertainment the same way people look at playing golf, going to the movies,...