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Estimated $4 Billion To Be Bet On Super Bowl

Noah Glick

This Sunday, the NFL hosts Super Bowl 50. And with more money being wagered on the game than ever before, there’s a lot at stake for Nevada casinos. Reno Public Radio’s Noah Glick reports.

This year, an estimated $4.2 billion will be bet on the Super Bowl. However, 97 percent of that, or 4.1 billion, will be done illegally. That’s because of one important distinction.

“There are casinos everywhere, but the only place you can bet on sports is in Nevada.”

That’s Terry Cox. He’s the director of the sportsbook at the Peppermill casino in Reno, where he’s expecting a huge boost in attendance this weekend.

“We have a public party that’s going to have 3,000 people. Probably 80 percent of those people are coming over from California or the Northwest. They’re not local people.”

Cox says that with casinos expanding to other states, the gaming industry in Nevada has lost some ground. But the Super Bowl is one way for local casinos to gain some of that back.

“We’re going to have thousands and thousands of people come into town this week who drive by half a dozen casinos in California to get here.”

Last year, nearly $116 million was wagered on the Super Bowl throughout Nevada. Kickoff for this year’s game is this Sunday at 3:30 p.m., where the Carolina Panthers are favored to beat the Denver Broncos.

Noah Glick is a former content director and host at KUNR Public Radio.
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