How sports gambling companies are handling the dreaded summer sports lull

There’s little question the sports betting industry thrives during football season and carries the significant momentum through March Madness.

This year, the industry benefited from delayed NBA and NHL post-season schedules, which created a steady flow of sports action into July. Paired with daily MLB slates, online sportsbooks were able to both maintain and grow customer bases.

However, like most industries, sports betting is at the mercy of the calendar, and there’s little question that the run from mid-July through late August presents the most challenging stretch of the year. With new football seasons yet to kick-off, baseball in its dog days of a 162-game grind, and a relative dearth of daily mainstream betting action available, momentum understandably takes a hit.

This summer, the Olympics provide an intriguing opportunity for sportsbooks as the Tokyo games mark the first time legal operators can offer odds on a variety of high-profile events. As certain athletes emerge and grab headlines, their events could draw measurable betting interest.

While betting in the games isn’t expected to be overly-aggressive, sportsbooks have a number of alternative methods to help mitigate the decline that coincides with a limited number of sports offerings.

UFC and early NFL odds draw interest

UFC events are often scoffed at by traditional sports fans as a niche interest, but the numbers suggest the sport packs quite a betting market punch. Prominent UFC events featuring notable fighters consistently turn new user acquisitions and draw steady action. In the case of UFC 264, which was headlined by a third Conor McGregor-Dustin Poirier meeting, the public responded with significant betting volume. From a business point of view for XLMedia, UFC 264 was by far one of the most successful new player conversion events since the NCAA Tournament back in March.

With football the undisputed market king, operators leverage the massive anticipation ahead of a new season by placing an added emphasis on futures markets. For instance, content created around popular talking points like division odds, Super Bowl odds, MVP odds, and Heisman Trophy odds help draw action. Along this same line, sportsbooks release NFL Week 1 lines well in advance of kick-off, giving bettors who perceive certain odds as a steal the chance to get in before the numbers move.

News cycle events and casino crossover

Similarly, sportsbooks organically work into the news cycle by responding to popular current events. For instance, Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons struggled immensely during his team’s failed post-season run. In the days following Philly’s post-season exit, talk about a change of scenery for Simmons reached a peak. As theoretical trade speculation mounted, oddsmakers capitalized by offering odds on Simmons’ next destination. In turn, the odds organically become part of the story. We also cannot ignore the massive reach that some sportsbooks have via social media to help drive interest. Barstool Sports certainly helped to increase the ratings and wagering interest in what is normally a quiet College Baseball World Series campaign on ESPN.

A growing industry also relieves the natural stagnation of the late-summer lull. As a number of states prepare to turn legal betting operations live, the top betting operators often offer early activation bonuses. Currently, DraftKings offers those in the state of Wyoming a $100 pre-registration bonus. A number of other states preparing for launch will likely offer similar activation bonuses in the coming weeks. Moreover, free-to-play contests don’t churn an immediate profit on conversions, but such games are integral in expanding customers bases in states that eventually greenlight the legalization of sports betting.

Finally, several of the top operators (DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM) also offer online casino platforms which receive additional ad and marketing attention.

Ultimately, while the weeks leading up to football season present a challenge for sportsbooks, enough options exist to keep the lights on until kick-off.

Jason Ziernicki, head of audience, US sports at XLMedia.