NFL Still Says ‘No’ to Sports Betting

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday that league ownership remains opposed to legalized sports betting because of integrity concerns, while also acknowledging that the regulatory framework in Nevada’s legal sports betting market could be “beneficial” when it comes to the Raiders eventually playing in Las Vegas. Owners voted 31-1 to approve the Raiders’ move from Oakland to Las Vegas, but Goodell said having a franchise located in the home of the largest legal sports betting market in the United States will not change the league’s stance on gambling. “I think we still strongly oppose [among ownership] legalized sports gambling,” Goodell…

Nevada Governor Questions NFL Stadium Finances

Gov. Brian Sandoval on Monday asked who would pay for the necessary upgrades to freeways and streets leading to a 65,000-seat domed football stadium proposed by Las Vegas Sands Corp., Majestic Realty and the Oakland Raiders. With a site recommendation anticipated as soon as Aug. 25 among four potential finalists, Sandoval said that he wants to know how traffic would be impacted by games, concerts and other big-ticket events held at the proposed stadium. “This is serious,” Sandoval said Monday during a meeting held by the Nevada Department of Transportation’s board of directors. “I’m going to need the information in…

Steve Wynn Jumps into Las Vegas Raiders Campaign

Casino tycoon Steve Wynn said he is actively involved in the campaign to bring the Raiders National Football League (NFL) franchise to Las Vegas. Last month it was announced that from next year a National Hockey League (NHL) team will become the first major league to play in the Nevada gambling resort. For many years the major sports leagues, including the NFL and NHL, were opposed to their teams playing in a city in which sports betting is legal due to fears over integrity. However, with Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis having been in discussions with Las Vegas about a…

Las Vegas Raiders Creeps Closer to Reality

Mark Davis was beaming as he posed with fans behind a black and silver “Las Vegas Raiders” banner. He made a few jokes before delivering a $500 million commitment to a new stadium in the city for his team. Then the owner of the Raiders got serious about the prospects of getting fellow NFL owners to allow him to move from Oakland to a city the league has long shunned because it has legal sports betting. “Let’s give them an offer they can’t refuse,” Davis said. “They’re going to approve it based on that.”  Little more than an idea a…

NFL Deal with 888

Will the NFL End Kickoff Returns?

The league owners voted to pass two rule changes Wednesday that will be seen as one-year experiments. The first rule is something that has been covered extensively and was expected to pass — automatic ejection of a player who receives two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in a game. Coaches were opposed to the automatic ejection penalty, but owners seem to like the idea. The second rule that passed will essentially eliminate the need for teams to return kickoffs. The league has moved the touchback from the 20-yard line to the 25-yard line. Making kickoff returns safer is something the league has been…

NFL Deal with 888

The NFL to Vegas? Adelson Wants to Make it Happen!

Billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson is scheduled to meet Friday with Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis about a possible move of the football team to Las Vegas. Adelson, the chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp. and one of the world’s richest men, wants to build a $1 billion stadium in Las Vegas that would be home to University of Nevada sporting events, concerts and possibly a professional football team, according to his spokesman Ron Reese. The stadium proposal is part of a broader call for ideas to promote travel in the state by Governor Brian Sandoval’s Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee. The…