Static and electronic signage on and off the ice, uniform logo patches, and television commercials combined to deluge Stanley Cup Finals viewers with gambling messaging, according to a new academic study by the University of Bristol.
The resulting recommendations made by the United Kingdom institution are likely to make sportsbooks in the United States chafe, even as states have already undertaken some of them. The Bristol study advocates for federal regulations that would:
- Ban gambling marketing during live sporting events that occur before 9 p.m. and limit how content can reach children;
- Limit the number of gambling placements per broadcast hour in all formats, including signage;
- Mandate responsible-gambling and age-restriction content.
Gambling data from NHL, NBA finals
Although the NBA was one of the first adopters of legal sports betting as an engagement engine and sponsorship vertical, the report deemed the disparity with how much more content appeared in NHL broadcasts “striking.” The report asserts that the Cup final won by the Florida Panthers in six games over the Edmonton Oilers was far more saturated with gambling content, with an average of more than three gambling messages per minute of broadcast.
Consider:
The Stanley Cup final contained 5,913 gambling messages according to the report.
The NBA Finals: 369
The study found that just 3.9% contained responsible gambling content and only 3.9% included age-limit warnings.
The staggering NHL tally was boosted mightily by the Oilers’ uniform patch for sports betting partner Play Alberta, which accounted for 33% of exposure. Although the Panthers didn’t brandish a jersey logo for official sports betting partner Hard Rock Bet, its signage was visible in Amerant Bank Arena. ESPN Bet accounted for 14% of messages, and BetMGM, for which Oilers forward Connor McDavid is a responsible gambling ambassador, 13%.
The study says that the gambling message exposure spiked in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final to 4.70 messages per minute, or one every 13 seconds. The most common gambling message was found to be uniform logo placement and sports betting commercials. The Washington Capitals in 2021 became the first NHL team to wield a sportsbook sponsor patch.
The NBA Finals aired between 21 and 107 gambling messages in games, likely fluctuating because the runner-up Indiana Pacers have a sportsbook partnership with FanDuel and the champion Oklahoma City Thunder has no gambling affiliations. Still, as noted by the study, virtual sportsbook signage was prevalent throughout both arenas during broadcasts.
Fanatics Sportsbook accounted for 54% of gambling messages in the NBA Finals, followed by Riverwind Casino (28%), which is located in Norman, Oklahoma.
