It’s okay to bet on the NFL down under.
The National Football League ownership group probably would object to the word hypocrite when it comes to describing their stance on legalized sports gambling. After all, the ownership group sued the state of New Jersey to stop legalized gambling in the state after local voters said yes in a vote to opening sportsbooks in 2011. The United States Supreme Court in 2018 would side with the New Jersey voters and legalized sports gambling across the United States. The NFL ownership group, seeing a chance to make money on legalized sports gambling, has since embraced the notion people want to bet on the product, football games. There are official partnerships in the United States with casinos as long as the casino doesn’t mention sports betting. But the NFL owners have no problems with being partners with a bookmaking company in Australia. The league and Tabcorp have a deal that makes Tabcorp the official league wagering partner in Australia. The NFL is also throwing in the NFL Network and the NFL Red Zone in the deal so gamblers can watch the games on Monday and Tuesday in betting venues across Australia. There are Australian dollars to be made. Betting is an avenue that the NFL ownership group sees as a way of getting more interest in the product.
That doesn’t mean the NFL plans to hold any pre-season games in the country. The NFL shut the door on that notion in 2017. Queensland, Australia officials wanted to host a National Football League game in Brisbane. Local tourism officials thought an NFL game would bring in American tourists. Australia is too far away for the league to stage a regular season game. The NFL has not been seen in Australia in the 21st century. The last pre-season game in the country was played in Sydney in 1999. Betting is a good substitute.
