The Cincinnati Bengals' battle against the Buffalo Bills Monday night isn't a big deal solely because the teams are competing for the top spot in the AFC ahead of the playoffs. It's also one of the first professional sporting events on which Ohioans can legally place bets.
Legal sports betting went into effect statewide on Sunday. While solid data about the first day of sports betting is scarce given that legal betting just started, sportsbook operators in Cincinnati say the launch has been promising.
"I think I can say it was probably our most successful launch to date," Bryan Bennett, chief operating officer of Betfred USA, told The Enquirer.
Betfred, which now operates in eight states, is partnered with the Bengals to offer mobile sports betting. An NFL policy prevents in-person betting at stadiums on game days.
While the kickoff of sports betting arrived near the end of the NFL season, operators say the New Year’s Day launch perfectly coincided with a busy day for professional football. According to the NFL's website, 14 games were scheduled for Sunday.
"Football is king in the United States when it comes to betting," Bennett said, adding the Bengals' game against the Bills is likely to be a big draw for sports betting. "That's going to be an absolute massive game here in southern Ohio," he said.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 29 in December 2021 legalizing sports betting in the state. The proliferation of sports betting in Ohio comes 13 years after voters approved a constitutional amendment authorizing the construction of four casinos in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus and Toledo.
The state is expected to become one of the largest markets for sports betting nationwide. Ohio budget officials estimated a $3.35 billion sports betting market, bringing in $24 million in taxes by mid-2024. PlayOhio, a gambling news organization, projected $8 billion in bets in 2023.
However, some observers are skeptical of the projected benefit to taxpayers, as casino revenue generated for the state, schools and local governments has fallen short of projections. Since 2012, Ohio's casinos have generated $2.7 billion in tax revenue, according to the Ohio Casino Control Commission. That's well below the $5.2 billion to $7.1 billion estimated in 2009.
Casinos, racinos, bars, bowling alleys and grocery stores are now one-stop shops for people placing bets on their favorite sporting events. Though online betting is the predominant means by which people gamble on sports, with between 70% and 90% of sports betting done online.
During the midnight launch of the Hard Rock Casino Sportsbook, there were lines of customers at the betting kiosks and at the betting windows, said George Goldhoff, president of Hard Rock Cincinnati. When the sportsbook reopened at 10 a.m., another line had formed, he added.
Goldhoff described the launch as "really successful and organized."
FanDuel Sportsbook, an online and retail sportsbook operator with 27 locations nationwide, opened its only brick-and-mortar location in Ohio at Belterra Park on Sunday. Karol Corcoran, general manager of FanDuel's online sportsbook, said that location is projected to be among the operator's most popular.
Online, the operator is already seeing a huge number of app downloads and a high volume of betting in the state, Corcoran said. "We expect Ohio to be one of our biggest states and the early indicators suggest that that's going to be the case."
While sports betting is anticipated to prove popular, Goldhoff said, the dozens of sports betting licenses doled out to operators in Hamilton County alone means there's likely to be strong competition.
In Cincinnati, local sports icons are getting in on the action. Pete Rose, who was exiled from professional baseball for betting on his own team as the Cincinnati Reds’ manager, placed the first bet at the Hard Rock Casino Sportsbook just after midnight Sunday.
"He bet $100 on the Reds to win it all in 2023," Goldhoff said.
Former Reds outfielder George Foster placed one of three first bets at Sunday's grand opening of BetMGM's sportsbook at the Great American Ball Park. And former Bengals wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh will place the ceremonial first bet at FanDuel's sportsbook at Belterra Park on Thursday.
Experts have warned that legal sports betting will increase rates of problem gambling in the state. The percentage of Ohioans deemed problem gamblers has doubled since the implementation of racinos and casinos but remained lower than the national average. Just under 1% of Ohio adults or about 76,400 people were problem gamblers compared to 2.2% of Americans, according to the most recent survey in 2017.
But sportsbook operators say their staffs are trained to notice signs of at-risk or problem gambling and take action.
"Any legitimate operator knows it can cause severe problems. But it is our responsibility to take care of those people," said Johnny Grooms, director of retail sports for BetMGM East. "We understand our business can have negative effects on those people."
Goldhoff said Hard Rock Casino hired 40 new employees to staff its sportsbook. He said the entire casino staff is trained to identify irresponsible betting behaviors.
Some operators, like FanDuel, offer online customers the option of adding deposit, wager and time limits to their account.
Online betting could also help spot gambling addiction quicker because technology can track spikes in betting or problematic behavior, Matt Schuler, executive director at the Ohio Casino Control Commission, told The Enquirer last month.
"(Ohioans have) been betting on sports for decades. It's just that now we can do it legally, and now we can do it responsibly," Goldhoff said. "There's not a better time to have launched it."
