ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (AP) – In the “bettors bet on absolutely anything” category, here’s a new one: a major sports betting agency is accepting bets on aerial drone races.
DraftKings said on Friday it is accepting bets for this weekend’s Drone Racing League championship, in which pilots pilot aerial drones in races.
Betting on league drone racing is legal in Colorado, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Tennessee and West Virginia, with regulatory approvals pending in other states.
“The sky is now the limit for DRL fans to enter the game, and we are excited to partner with DraftKings to turn our high-speed racing competition into the ultimate sport to bet on,” said Drone Racing League President Rachel Jacobson. . “The opportunity for us to increase our involvement through all forms of gambling and betting will only increase as mobile betting becomes more adopted across the country.”
Sports betting and the league are hosting “pre-flight shows” on Friday night on Twitter before the live events, in which specialized sports bettors and drone pilots will instruct fans on how to participate.
Championship events start on Saturday.
Jacobson said his races are all virtual this year, taking place in a simulation in which real-life drone physics is incorporated. But it also hosts live drone races at locations including the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida; Alexandra Palace in London and a self-museum in Munich.
DraftKings says there is a market for that. It offered free-to-play competitions in drone racing last year to gauge interest in the activity, and the response was 30% higher than normal for a new sport introduced on the betting platform. There have been over 150,000 entries for these free contests so far.
As in the case of major sports, including football, baseball and basketball, players will be able to place bets before and during races.
DraftKings said consumer research showed that drone fans are three times more likely to place a bet than fans in major sports leagues and 90% more likely to be interested in sports betting in general than the average fan. of sports.
The drone league is a private company from New York founded in 2015. It has already held events in six countries.
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Follow Wayne Parry on http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC.