NHL Hires Gambling Watchdog for Vegas Expansion

Las Vegas has never had a professional sports franchise, but that will change with the National Hockey League working to place an expansion team here. And the NHL has hired gambling watchdog Sportradar AG ahead of the move.

Owned by the National Football League, Sportradar is a Swiss data company that uses advanced stats to monitor suspicious gambling activity.

Sportradar not only works for the NFL and, now, NHL, but they’re also close to g a six-year, $250-million contract with the National Basketball Association.

Give the widespread prevalence of online sports betting, the NHL and other major professional sports leagues have softened their stance that a Vegas-based team is suspect to point shaving.

But as we’ve discussed in the past, there are still fears surrounding a team in Vegas. Making a deal with Sportsradar is a good way to help ease these fears.

Andreas Krannich, Sportradar’s managing director of strategy and integrity, told Bloomberg that her company began discussing a deal with the NHL last year. In addition to their new deal with the NHL and pending contract with the NBA, Sportradar also works with the International Ice Hockey Federation and German Ice Hockey League.

“You would be surprised how far this cancer is already in sport,” said Krannich. “There’s already international organized crime looking into this topic.”

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has said all along that Las Vegas’ legal sportsbooks haven’t deterred the league from expanding here. Bettman cites that sports bettors wager less money on hockey than they do other major sports.

Last year’s statistics from the Nevada Gaming Control Board show that Vegas bettors wagered $1.8 billion on football, $1.4 billion on basketball, and hockey was part of the “other” category that drew $336 million in combined bets.

“While we have the utmost confidence in the integrity of our sports and our games, Sportradar’s Fraud Detection System provides an additional layer of security and protection,” said Bettman.

Famous athletes and sports team owners are part of Sportradar’s ownership group, including Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, and Charlotte Bobcats owner, and 6-time NBA champion Michael Jordan.

For the sake of a legitimate deal, Leonsis didn’t take part in Sportradar’s discussions with the NHL.