Exactly what Led To Finish Of The state of michigan State, Caesars Sportsbook Offer, And What’ s Following?

What has seemed inevitable for about eight weeks now has already been confirmed. The partnership between Michigan State University and Caesars Sportsbook is ending.

While many reports had indicated as much, Legal Sports Report was able to obtain confirmation on Thursday from PlayFly Sports, the media rights holder for MSU, that the agreement has been terminated. It was also confirmed that the Caesars deal with LSU was ending.

The end of the MSU and LSU contracts follows the termination of agreements between PointsBet and both Colorado and Maryland. What once appeared to be a growing revenue stream for universities is now likely in jeopardy.

What happened towards the deal among MSU plus Caesars Sportsbook?

When Caesars and the Spartans announced their deal in January of 2022, it seemed like the beginning of a national movement. Sports betting in Michigan was a year old, and new states were entering the market fairly regularly.

It was no surprise that college athletic departments saw a profit-making opportunity in the growing market. And it wasn’t surprising that sportsbooks saw an opportunity to expand their customer base with both young bettors and sports fans.

Red flags appeared almost immediately, though. At LSU, a promotional email was sent to all students, not just those of legal gambling age.

Sign-up promotions targeted at students, even those who were 21, raised concerns among responsible gambling advocates.

The American Gaming Association didn’t take long to start taking a closer look, and about a year after MSU and Caesars had announced their deal, the AGA had weighed in, effectively putting an end to similar deals in the future. Legislation in Maryland prohibited such deals, forcing their land-grant university to end its partnership with PointsBet.

A groundswell at MSU wasn’t far behind, as a petition was started in early April by faculty members calling for the deal to be terminated. To the credit of the MSU Athletic Department, it was willing to listen. A representative told PlayMichigan shortly after the AGA decision that PlayFly was examining how it affected the deal.

Following college athletics betting scandals in Alabama and Iowa, The Athletic’s Chris Vanini reported ($) that the MSU deal with Caesars was effectively ending. The Lansing State Journal’s Graham Couch went a step further earlier this week, publishing a column about the termination, including a quote from MSU Athletic Director Allen Haller.

While it was PlayFly that had to work out the details, it was clear that MSU wanted out.

PlayMichigan attempted to obtain a comment from Caesars on the matter, but was unsuccessful.

Future of college or university athletic relates to sportsbooks

Right now, what?

It’s likely there will be a dispute from MSU, Caesars, or both when the deal is officially terminated.

Publicly, at MSU, it will mean no longer seeing Caesars signage at athletic events.

Privately, PlayFly, the university, and Caesars will have to work out the details of ending a deal that had several years and billions of dollars remaining.

It seems crazy to think deals like this are permanently dead. There’s a lot of money to be made with them, and the sports betting market is still growing and evolving.

Each new state is learning from the past, and responsible gambling is being emphasized more and more. Right now, that means stopping such deals. Eventually, though, it could open the door to better deals that feature better safeguards.