NFL Owners Reportedly Will Allow Sportsbooks to Operate at Stadiums Next Season

The NFL is making it even easier to gamble on game day.

Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic reported Tuesday that NFL owners voted Monday to allow sportsbooks located at stadiums to operate on game days starting with the 2023 season.

The Washington Commanders are the only team with a sportsbook in their stadium. The Arizona Cardinals have one outside their stadium, as do the New York Jets and New York Giants, who share MetLife Stadium.

From a functionality standpoint, nothing prevents fans from gambling from their seats using legal apps. However, there are times when stadium cellphone service is spotty and location verification can be difficult with tens of thousands of people into one area.

Allowing sportsbooks to operate brick-and-mortar locations inside stadiums could eliminate hassles for gamblers unable to place bets from their phones.

It seems likely more teams will seek to add sportsbook components to their stadiums with the rule change. Sports gambling has quickly become a billion-dollar industry since the United States Supreme Court ruled that states could make decisions on an individual basis in 2018.

The NFL had lobbied to keep sports gambling banned in most of the U.S. but has since embraced its legalization. The league has entered partnerships with gambling companies, regularly features ads in broadcasts and at games and has even allowed the incorporation of betting lines in NFL Network content.

Seventeen franchises reside in states where sports gambling is legal.