Cancelations threaten sports betting market

March 12, 2020
By

Professional and collegiate sports leagues have canceled or suspended events to prevent the spread of COVID-19, stalling the American sports betting market for the foreseeable future.

The NBA was the first professional league to suspend games, and MLB and MLS announced suspensions on Thursday.

The NHL is also expected to announce it has put its season on hold for the time being.

College basketball conference tournaments across the country were canceled entirely as the NCAA determines whether to go through with its tournament as scheduled. 

The NCAA said on Wednesday that tournament games will be played with limited attendance. 

The ATP Tour will suspend play six weeks, while the NHL is deliberating whether to suspend games.

NASCAR has yet to make a decision on whether it will suspend races.

The PGA Tour said it will continue play events as scheduled without fans. 

Sportsbooks and DFS sites face an unprecedented stretch of time where few betting eligible events will be played. 

The outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) figures to substantially weaken March handle and revenue, especially if the NCAA Tournament is postponed or canceled. 

Last year Nevada sportsbooks took in $597m of March handle buoyed by March Madness wagering.

Las Vegas casinos are also likely to lose customers as fewer Americans travel out of fear of obtaining the virus. 

The Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Tournament held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas was among the tournaments canceled. 

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