The NFL and NBA have quickly embraced the sports betting expansion across America, and now other major leagues are getting involved. The Vegas Golden Knights has now entered into a multi-year partnership with William Hill – the world’s leading betting operator. It is the first deal of its kind in the NHL.
Making Big Plans
As part of the deal, William Hill and the Golden Knights will work together to engage fans who are over the legal betting age using a wide range of media and promotional platforms. William Hill branding will be on display throughout the arena and a dasherboard will be shown on television. During intermission, updated league odds will be shown and away game watch parties will be hosted by William Hill.
Kerry Bubolz, President of the Vegas Golden Knights says:
“Like the Vegas Golden Knights, William Hill U.S. is a proud ‘Vegas Born’ organization. This partnership between a major professional team and a sports book operator is a historic, landmark agreement and we are delighted to be leading the way with William Hill in this space.”
Picking Great Partners
You might think that the biggest sports betting operator in the world might want to team up with a more established team, but the Vegas Golden Knights are the perfect partner. Even though they made their debut very recently, they have become one of the most successful teams in the NHL, so William Hill has certainly chosen wisely.
Usually, NHL expansion teams tend to struggle during their first season, usually finishing at the bottom of the conference. However, the Las Vegas Knights had an incredibly successful year with a in rate of 62% – the highest out of an expansion team in their first year.
The team has also earned impressive ticket revenue. After just one year, the Vegas Golden Knights are one of the highest grossing teams in the league having earned almost $65 million. In fact, it has the fourth-highest attendance rates of all NHL teams with 103.7%. The only teams with higher rates are Chicago (109.7%), Minnesota (105.9%), and Washington (104.6%).
So, you can certainly see why William Hill has decided to team up with the Vegas Golden Knights. It is a successful expansion team that has attracted the attention of thousands of fans very quickly. Also, being based in Las Vegas, the team’s fans are already familiar with sports betting and they are sure to have a positive response to William Hill’s partnership with the popular NHL team.
It seems that the only major league that it left to comment on sports betting is baseball. Will the MLB get on board with the new wave of sports betting partnerships?
