Sports Betting, The Cause For Improved NFL Viewership?

Last week on CNBC’s Power Lunch program, New York Giants co-owner Jonathan Tisch stated that legalized sports betting is having a “big influence” on the NFL’s rising TV ratings.

He went onto say that due to the unpredictable nature of the sport, betting is keeping people glued in right until time runs out. Sighting last minute field goals as a perfect example for how games, as well as bets, can be won or lost in the dying seconds of play.

There seems to be some credence to what he’s saying, as the league’s TV viewership has risen 5% from last year’s figures, and there’s also been a 49% increase in total viewers since last year. Of course this could be attributed to more than just sports betting, but should these trends look to continue, it could prove more challenging for doubters to deny Tisch’s claims.

He went on to mention that he thinks the growth of legalized sports betting will continue, and he believes “the NFL is getting ready” for that occurrence. Adding that there’s a chance football fans will eventually be in a situation where they can bet the games from inside their respective sporting venues.