Exclusive: Circa Resort & Casino CEO Derek Stevens speaks on betting trends for Super Bowl LIX and the rise of Las Vegas as a sports entertainment capital

As the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs prepare for battle ahead of Super Bowl LIX on February 9, Gaming America sits down with Circa Resort & Casino CEO Derek Stevens to discuss recent betting trends, his favorite props for the big game and how Las Vegas has turned into the premier destination for sports tourism. 

Golden opportunities

While Las Vegas has always been a hub for entertainment and gaming, the city was primarily driven by boxing and mixed martial arts when it came to playing host for sporting events, such as the pay-per-views held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Despite a “lull” period setting in, the city was revitalized by the debut of the Vegas Golden Knights ice hockey franchise. 

After the Golden Knights made a Stanley Cup Finals run during its inaugural season, the desire for additional local franchises continued to grow amongst Las Vegas residents, only being fulfilled once the NFL moved one of its most storied franchises to Sin City. 

“The great thing about Las Vegas is that when you think about sports, you would think about Las Vegas and the big time events. Boxing really comes to mind. Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Tommy Hearns and some Muhammad Ali fights. When those events happened, you could just tell that there was a buzz in the air,” Stevens said. 

“Then there’s a little bit of a lull, but all of a sudden, coming out of nowhere is this expansion hockey team that most people thought would fail because nobody in Vegas really grew up playing hockey. Las Vegas became the place to be. If you were a fan of the road team, you would want to come to Las Vegas to watch your team. So that’s where sports tourism really took off and a few years after that, the NFL came here with the Raiders and I think we’ve seen sports tourism take off to another level.”

To house the Golden Knights and Raiders, Las Vegas city officials approved the construction of two new facilities that have become ideal destinations for essentially all sporting leagues, including T-Mobile Arena and Allegiant Stadium. 

T-Mobile Arena is now home to not only the Golden Knights, but select UFC pay-per-view events, the NBA’s In-Season Tournament for two years running and has continued to hold premier boxing events as well. Allegiant Stadium was chosen to host Super Bowl LVIII during February 2024, setting the stage for Las Vegas to showcase as to why it is the most practical city to host events of such magnitude. 

“The great thing about Vegas is there’s so much opportunity for people to unwind, to relax or get amped up. Whether you’re a culinary person, a shopper, somebody who likes to have a few drinks and a cigar or somebody who likes to bet on sports, you’ve got all these opportunities. The greatest adult getaway ever is Las Vegas.”

Taking notice of trends

In spite of Super Bowl LIX being played in New Orleans as opposed to Las Vegas, the excitement and anticipation that blossoms with an event such as the Super Bowl never fails to surmount the city. As Stevens walks the floors of Circa Resort & Casino, it is easy to distinguish this time of year for sports bettors from any other event, which pale in comparison to the amount of traffic the Super Bowl generates every season. 

“For me, there’s just a buzz in the air. I was in the elevator a few moments ago with a handful of bartenders and blackjack dealers, and you could tell everybody’s just excited. Whether you work here or whether you’re a sports fan or not, everybody feels it. Everybody knows the limos are out in full force picking up the high rollers. The event planning, all the different parties that we’re doing, it just gets everyone amped up this time of year,” Stevens said. 

“And like I said, even if you’re not a sports fan, in an environment like this, there’s still that excitement and that edge from the amount of people that come into town. They come in hot, they come in smiling, they come in ready to go. So it’s always a fun environment in Las Vegas even if the Super Bowl isn’t being hosted here.”

Good to know: The American Gaming Association estimated on February 4 that $1.39bn will be wagered on Super Bowl LIX this year 

Stevens noted how bettors seem to have an interest in some unexpected props that are being offered ahead of Super Bowl LIX through Circa Sports and fellow operators. He explained how props such as a successful two-point conversion or a player weighing over 300 lbs to score a touchdown have generated much activity leading up to the big game. 

While only “5-8%” of the expected total money had been placed at the time of writing, Stevens also shared how most of the money has favored the Eagles, which would result in the house hoping for a Kansas City victory on February 9. Circa Sports is also offering its Circa Squares betting option, which allows bettors a chance to win by correctly betting on the combination of the last digits for each team’s score at the end of each quarter.

The bets are based around a board that has the home team on one axis and the away team on the other axis, as well as the numbers zero-nine running down both sides. Bettors will have the opportunity to wager on whichever and/or however many squares as they so choose, while also being able to select different squares for each quarter. Each square will also have its own odds set and combinations that are less likely to occur will feature larger payouts due to the reduced chances of cashing. 

Insight from an expert

Known for being quite the sports bettor himself, Stevens shared that he will be looking for Eagles running back Saquon Barkley to be highly productive against Kansas City, as the Circa Sports Founder will have many of Barkley’s alternate rushing overs on his betslip. 

“I like Saquon Barkley way over his rushing yards. If you have some ability to have an alternate line, he just has to break one of these (long runs) and then he doesn’t just go over the number, he goes way over. And because it’s the Super Bowl, you should have not just his rushing total, but 10, 20, 30 and 40 yards over that. Barkley has a lot of upside on these various alternate lines if you bet them all the way up.” 

While Stevens didn’t provide an exact prediction for the game, the trust he clearly shows in Barkley would lead one to believe he has Philadelphia winning Super Bowl LIX, although it is certainly difficult to bet against Kansas City and quarterback Patrick Mahomes. 

Barkley also received the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year award on February 6 for his efforts throughout the regular season, having generated over 2,000 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns over the course of 2024-2025. It is easy to assess why Stevens will be including Barkley’s alternate overs as part of his Super Bowl LIX wagers, as Philadelphia’s leading rusher has continued his success into the postseason by producing over 400 yards and five touchdowns. 

If one were to follow Stevens’ advice prior to kickoff, taking Barkley to win the Super Bowl LIX Most Valuable Player (MVP) award is also offered by Circa Sports, which can be parlayed with an Eagles victory for more favorable odds. 

Outlook for the future

With the Golden Knights and Raiders in tow, Las Vegas is continuing to search for franchises that could provide additional excitement for a city that’s already built significant growth towards sports tourism in recent years. On April 19, 2024, the Oakland Athletics baseball franchise announced that it will be making the move to Las Vegas and construction on a new ballpark will begin during 2025. The team will relocate temporarily to Sacramento, California while the stadium is under development, but the relocation is expected to fully commence by 2028. 

The Athletics have struggled to sell tickets in recent history due to a lack of regular season success, but Stevens doesn’t foresee any issues for ownership to sell out seats once fans can attend games in Las Vegas. 

“Vegas is such a great sports town that I think it’s proven it’ll be able to handle a Major League Baseball team without a problem. There might be a lot of visiting fans in the seats, but I don’t think there’s going to be any problem selling out these games.”

Las Vegas will also be one of the cities that the NBA considers for its next expansion franchise, as well as locations such as Seattle, Nashville and even Mexico City. Stevens deemed Las Vegas as the “perfect” city for basketball, and believes games would resemble the atmosphere garnered by the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers. Describing a possible Las Vegas basketball team as “showtime east,” Stevens envisions a star-studded arena that would be filled to the brim with celebrity attendees for every game. 

Whenever the NBA does choose to expand to Las Vegas, it should be well-prepared for the anticipation a new franchise will bring for residents across the city. Las Vegas will continue to prove itself as the most prominent destination for sports entertainment and tourism, backed by enthusiasts like Stevens who will always believe it is the place to be for every fan and guest. 

Kirk Geller

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