Deal with Genius Sports puts Premier Lacrosse League in front of sports bettors this summer

May 13, 2020 11:25 AM
  • Howard Stutz, CDC Gaming Reports
May 13, 2020 11:25 AM
  • Howard Stutz, CDC Gaming Reports

Paul Rabil, who is not only considered one of lacrosse’s top professional players but is also the co-founder of the Premier Lacrosse League, has always thought his sport would be an attractive wagering opportunity for the U.S. betting public.

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This summer, Rabil will get his wish.

On Tuesday, the PLL announced an agreement Tuesday with Genius Sports Group making the London-based sports data provider the official data and integrity partner for the league’s two-week championship series.

The tournament will be televised by NBC and the NBC Sports Network July 25 through August 9.

Genius Sports Group will power live betting markets on the PLL and provide sportsbook operators with league content, statistics, and other wagering data for the tournament, which will involve all seven PLL teams and will determine the league’s champion.

The tournament replaces the PLL’s regular season, which was shelved by the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic that has sidelined all the major professional sports leagues since mid-March and shut down the NCAA’s spring sports season completely.

The PLL will hold its tournament in a location to be unveiled soon, Rabil said, in quarantine conditions and without fans. But the addition of wagering, he said, will heighten interest in the 20 games to be played over 16 days.

PLL co-founder Paul Rabil

“Having Genius Sports brings an editorial department into the picture that provides information to give fans tremendous insights into the competition,” said Rabil, who not only co-founded the league with his brother Mike Rabil but is a star midfielder for the Atlas franchise.

Paul Rabil, who has played lacrosse professionally for more than a decade and was a two-time NCAA champion at Johns Hopkins University, said the only legal sports wagering ever offered on lacrosse was limited small-stakes action in Las Vegas during the sport’s “final four” tournament.

He is confident the PLL will attract a larger betting audience than some of the sports currently being offered in the U.S. in the absence of the professional leagues, like table tennis, darts, and obscure soccer leagues.

“Lacrosse has a long history and it’s a little more than a novelty,” Paul Rabil said. “It’s been played on the NCAA level for 125 years.”

The PLL brought in sports betting consultant Sara Slane and Nevada gaming attorney A.G. Burnett – a former chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board – to offer advice on the sports gaming aspects.

The league has discussed its plans with sportsbook operators William Hill U.S., DraftKings, and BetMGM, and held preliminary discussions with regulators in several states, including Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and New Hampshire.

Having Genius Sports on board will help protect the league and its players from any betting-related corruption.

“The PLL is committed to delivering the ultimate digital fan experience with sports wagering, providing a new competitive outlet to interact with every play of every game,” Genius Sports Group CEO Mark Locke said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with such an innovative and forward-thinking league representing one of America’s most popular and respected sports.”

Paul Rabil said he didn’t mind if other sports stage a comeback around the same time. There is hunger from the sports betting public for live sports of any kind, and the growth of legal sports betting in the U.S. – the activity is now legal in 18 states – adds to the attraction.

Last week, ESPN released a survey that found sports fans were willing to watch live televised games with no fans in attendance, meaning than sports may not necessarily have to wait for fans to be allowed back into stadiums and arenas to resume play.

The PLL teams – Archers, Atlas, Chaos, Chrome, Redwoods, Waterdogs, and Whipsnakes – are not geographically located but are part of a single entity tour-based model. Last summer, the teams played each other in 13 different cities.

“We feel like the PLL is the most innovative sports league in the world, and today is another testament to the hard work of our leadership team,” said Mike Rabil, who is also the league’s CEO. “We’ve partnered with the premier data provider in Genius Sports and will continue to work closely with top-tier operators to ensure a first-in-class experience for bettors. With the addition of legalized sports wagering in the PLL, the PLL fan experience just got better.”

Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.