The Rise of Athlete Brand Ambassadors in Sports Betting
Athletes and online gambling, particularly online sportsbooks, make for a natural partnership. Many legal online sportsbooks have opted to attached either an active or retired athlete to their product. The celebrities and athletes representing our brand are legends in their fields and embody the style, sophistication, and panache that BetMGM is known for.
There’s definitely no shortage of athletes that have gotten into endorsing an online casino or online sportsbook. Don’t expect that to change any time soon. Here’s just a handful of the well-known athletes that have promoted or been spokespersons for an online casino, online sportsbook, social casino, or prediction market:
- Tom Brady: BetMGM
- Bryson DeChambeau: DraftKings
- Kevin Garnett: BetMGM
- Wayne Gretzky: BetMGM
- Rob Gronkowski: FanDuel
- Shaquille O’Neal: DraftKings
Sports Influencer Revenue and Sponsorship Costs
Pricing is driven by sport popularity, competitive level, and media profile — not just follower count. Professional athlete deals typically involve more complex structures than standard influencer campaigns. Brand ambassador agreements are multi-year contracts with annual retainer, content deliverables, event appearances, and product usage rights. This is also a way athletes can earn additional revenue that they can use to aid charitable causes or help out their community.
Professional Athlete Sports Betting: Legal Steps and Penalties
Sports gambling is legal for most adults, but professional athletes face restrictions on when they can bet and which events they can bet on. Professional sports leagues generally have rules that prevent players from betting on their sport.
For example, players in the National Football League (NFL) cannot bet on NFL events. They can bet on non-NFL sporting events through legal sports betting means. However, NFL rules prohibit coaches, trainers, and other officials from engaging in sports betting, even for non-NFL events. Under NFL rules, NFL players who bet on NFL football games can face a suspension of at least one year. Players can face suspensions, fines, or dismissal for violating the sports gambling restrictions.
The Push for Responsible Gambling
“Advertising plays an essential role in migrating consumers away from predatory illegal sportsbooks and into the protections of the legal, regulated market while providing responsible gaming resources,” AGA President and CEO Bill Miller said.
Sports gambling is widespread among professional athletes. One recent European report showed that 57% of professional athletes surveyed gambled on sports in the previous year, with 8% exhibiting problem gambling behavior, roughly three times greater than the general population.
Develop partnerships with sports betting operators and vendors on responsible gambling. Advocate for television, digital and radio PSAs on safer sports betting.
Sources Quoted:
Quotes and data were successfully extracted from Saturday Down South, BetMGM Corporate, Elite Sports NY, InfluencerFee, 1010XL & 92.5FM, Super Lawyers, Front Office Sports, and the National Council on Problem Gambling.
Leo Falsafi is a digital marketing veteran and senior journalist at Virlan.co, where he covers the intersection of digital marketing, gaming, and breaking US trending news. With nearly two decades of hands-on experience in SEO and digital strategy, Leo has consulted for and scaled hundreds of companies. His deep industry roots allow him to deliver sharp, fact-checked insights and analysis on the trends shaping today's digital landscape.