NFL-Super Bowl showdown to provide betting bonanza

The Super Bowl has long been the single biggest sports betting event of the year in the United States and Sunday's showdown in Glendale, Arizona could reach new heights as wagering on the NFL's championship game has exploded in popularity.

It will be the first Super Bowl held in a state that offers legal sports betting and there is even a physical sportsbook on the same grounds as the stadium that will host the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs.

Mix in the fact that there are three additional states that offer legal sports betting compared with a year ago, for a total of 33 states plus Washington, D.C., and it is no wonder a betting bonanza is on the horizon.

Sports betting was allowed to be legalized at state level in 2018 when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a 1992 federal law that barred it in most places.

The NFL, like many other leagues, had long been against sports betting due partly to concerns about the integrity of the game but changed its tune and turned it into a viable revenue stream through agreements with sportsbook operators.

"The fact that the Super Bowl is being played in a state where you can legally bet on sports was almost unthinkable five years ago," American Gaming Association (AGA) President and CEO Bill Miller told Reuters.

"There is important symbolism and economics around the fact that a Super Bowl is being held in a state where sports betting is legal, no question about that."

RECORD WAGERS

According to analysts at PlayUSA, legal sportsbooks across the United States could take in a record $1.1 billion in Super Bowl wagers, led by Nevada ($176 million), New York ($161 million) and New Jersey ($115 million).

A survey by the AGA, a trade group for the U.S. casino industry,