Vegas Sportsbooks Granted Permission to Offer Bets on Academy Awards
The Las Vegas sportsbooks in previous years have not been allowed to take bets on nonsporting events, the most popular of which is the Academy Awards. For the first time ever, they were granted this permission for the upcoming awards show. Likewise, Vegas books will be able to offer odds on such popular Web betting entertainment events as political elections, the World Series of Poker winners and American Idol.
“The Oscars is widely considered among the top 5, if not the top 3, one day betting events online,” noted Payton O’Brien, Senior Editor of the Gambling911.com website. “It is like a mini Super Bowl and has been for more than a decade.”
The Nevada Gaming Commission unanimously approved amendments to gaming regulations that allow betting on such events this week.
But some of these bets can prove tricky.
In recent years, online bookmakers have had to pull wagering on such pre-taped events as the television reality show Survivor after a number of suspicious bets came in from a specified location.
“It’s hard to say whether I’d want to pursue Academy Award bets,” Wynn Sportsbook Director Johnny Avello told the Las Vegas Sun. “If it’s an easy slam dunk, I’d be OK with it. But if it would be a long, drawn-out process, it may not be worth it.”
“I think it could be a great opportunity for us,” said Jay Kornegay, director of the Las Vegas Hilton Superbook. “By accepting nontraditional wagers, we could compete with some of the offshore books that offer these things.”
- Jordan Bach, Gambling911.com
