Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which owns Washington D.C.’s NBA, NHL, and WNBA teams, bought into the potential U.S. sport betting market even before the Supreme Court’s ruling in May 2018 that overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act.
“We made a bet and it paid off,” Monumental Sports Executive Vice President Zach Leonsis said Wednesday during the SBC Digital Summit North America. The company invested in data provider Sportradar on the idea that legal sports betting would quickly grow following a favorable ruling by the justices.
Today, 18 states and Washington D.C. have legal sports betting, with four more states expected to launch later this year.
Now, the Washington, D.C.,-based company is looking to create a showcase at its D.C. arena that could become a model other team owners and arena operators would look to copy.
Leonsis said the company’s deal with sportsbook operator William Hill US to place a wagering facility at Capital One Arena will turn the venue into a year-round entertainment center.
Monumental also bought a tavern adjacent to the arena that is being transformed into a high-end sports bar and restaurant. Leonsis said a celebrity chef will be hired to set the menu.
“This is a landmark deal and we’re hopeful we’ll be ready to go in the fall,” Leonsis said of the arena that is home to the NHL’s Washington Capitals, NBA’s Washington Wizards and WNBA’s Washington Mystics.
“We have 225 events a year there, but we see the potential for the arena being used for watch parties when there are big events, like March Madness or an NFL Sunday,” Leonsis said. “All of a sudden, you have a sportsbook that can seat 20,000 fans.”
Under the sports betting regulations developed by the city, Capital One Arena is surrounded by a three-block entertainment zone that can include both retail and mobile sports wagering. The arena sits at one of the city’s busiest Metro stops and could become an attraction for neighboring states, such as Maryland, which has casinos, but is still considering legalizing sports betting.
Leonsis is a proponent of in-game mobile sports wagering, which has shown success in several markets. Earlier this year, before the NBA season was halted by the coronavirus pandemic, Monumental test-marketed a non-wagering in-game system during a Wizards games shown on the local NBC sports channel.
He said the 10 games attracted a larger audience than normal and the system was set to be tried out on several Capital games until the NHL season was also shelved.
“In-game wagering is the future,” Leonsis said. “We can envision opening the lower bowl of the arena and people watching the games while wagering on the action.”
During game days and certain in-arena events, ticketed and non-ticketed fans will have access to the sportsbook, which will also be open on non-event days. William Hill’s mobile sports betting app will be available to sports fans for wagering inside the arena during games, as permitted by the Washington, D.C., regulations.
Leonsis said the marriage between the arena and the sportsbook could become a model for other teams and cities on how professional sports and legal sports wagering can co-exist.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
