PointsBet inks wide-ranging market access deal with University of Maryland
Sports betting firm agrees multi-year marketing partnership with Big Ten Conference stalwarts
PointsBet has signed a broad ranging multi-year deal to become the sports betting partner of the University of Maryland’s Athletics department.
The deal, brokered by external firm, Playfly Sports, is the first sports betting partnership within the NCAA’s Big Ten Conference, the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the US.
It includes fan-facing in-game and on campus marketing located at Maryland’s XFINITY Center and Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium, in addition to making strategic responsible and problem gambling education available to Maryland staff, students, and fans.
The partnership will also include a philanthropic component, which will be announced at a later date.
In addition to in-arena resources and the usage of commercial assets, PointsBet will be featured across Maryland’s digital channels and sports radio network broadcasts.
In 2020, PointsBet became the first-ever sports betting operator to partner alongside an NCAA Power-5 athletic department with the University of Colorado Buffaloes.
Addressing the Maryland partnership, PointsBet USA CEO Johnny Aitken explained “Investing in the University of Maryland athletics program expands our ability to impact local communities and the greater DMV region while also connecting PointsBet with alumni that remain actively involved in reverence to their alma mater.
“Sports betting education and safe gambling is key to our long-term strategy, as is making a tangible impact on the communities we invest in. We are proud to work with such a high-profile, storied university to further these objectives,” Aitken added.
PointsBet initially gained access to the Maryland market through an agreement with the Riverboat on the Potomac, a licensed satellite simulcast facility for horseracing and minority owned small business located in Charles County, Maryland.