by: Gene Koprowski.
Some online gambling sites report a 50
percent increase in betting on the Super Bowl, according to Reed
Richards, a spokesman for BetUs.com. Interest in the Arizona Cardinals
is the main reason for the surge, expert reckons.
"I think Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner is a Cinderella story -- an older guy with one last run in him. We are seeing a lot of women getting involved because they are interested in his back story. Young people aren't always the stars," said Richards.
Warner appeared to capture fans' emotions in 2000 when the former supermarket bag boy led 200-1 long shot St. Louis to the Super Bowl title.
Gamblers are again hoping Warner, 37, and the 6.5-point underdog Cardinals can again make history.
"There is a ton of underdog money line wagering," said Tony Sinisi, the odds director for Las Vegas Sports Consultants. "Rather than taking the points, they take the odds."
Last year, about $92 million was bet legally in Nevada -- the only state where gambling on college and professional sporting events is legal -- and sportsbooks are predicting the number will soar well over $100 million this year. But even in tough times, sports gambling experts are expecting billions to be bet on the Super Bowl as the industry continues to grow thanks in large part to easy access on the Internet. About $2.6 billion was wagered at the Nevada sportsbooks in 2007, according to the state's Gaming Control Board. But online, experts estimated about $20 billion were wagered on sports last year.
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A gamer betting on the Steelers would need them to prevail by more than 6.5 points to win money. A person betting on the Cardinals would need them to win, or lose by less than 6.5. Thousands are taking the Cardinals to win the game outright -- a trend that served gamblers well last year when the heavy-underdog New York Giants upset the previously undefeated New England Patriots, 17-14. It also worked well for those who bet on New England to defeat the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXVI, as the 14-point underdogs pulled out a 20-17 win.
BetUs.com, which was recently named 2008 Sports Book of the Year by Online Gaming Insider, and others would not reveal specifically how much has been bet on the Super Bowl, but more than $8 billion -- both legally and illegally -- is expected to be placed on the sport's biggest contest.
As the Super Bowl has grown in popularity, so to has betting on it.
Bets can span from how many yards a running back will gain to how many catches a player records. But the past decade, it has evolved. BetUs.com, however, has odds on players getting arrested leading up to the Super Bowl (Santonio Holmes, 2/1 odds), touchdown dances (River Dance, 9/1 odds) and how many songs Brue "The Boss" Springstein will play (over/under 3).
Las Vegas Sports Consultants has posted about 300 prop bets for its clients, which include the Las Vegas Hilton, Caesar's and the Palms, with most created by senior odds maker Dan O'Brien.
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