Two unlikely bedfellows are American Football and online poker sites. The sports and pastimes are incredibly different attracting wildly varying audiences. Despite that, any sports league trying to make up ground on a competitor needs to find additional income streams, and partnering with gambling firms is an easy way to do that.
Rarely will a game go past where you don’t hear or see some kind of advert related to online poker sites with texas holdem games, while it’s safe to imagine it won’t be long before betting on USFL and XFL games becomes commonplace too.
The Houston Gamblers
One of the most obvious connections is one of the franchise names. The Houston Gamblers have a great team name which resonates with poker audiences as they would consider themselves gamblers too. Add in the historical relevance of Texas to poker and it’s a recipe for success.
Whether or not the name carries sporting confidence is another question. Do players and coaches want to ‘gamble’ on their career at a team that seemingly is open to adverse risks? Not to mention the team is one of the worst in the contemporary USFL having never qualified for the post-season and finishing last in their division in the 2022 season.
Broadcasts After Major Sports-Betting Events
Recent coverage and news suggest that the USFL scheduling is trying to position itself to horse racing fans, as games will typically take place just after the live transmissions of popular races like the Kentucky Derby. This suggests that the USFL wants to appeal to more pro-betting audiences. This is only validated by looking at the contemporary USFL website as there are plenty of opportunities to play with the competition by making predictions on events and results from the upcoming games.
XFL Merger Opens Up Las Vegas
In September 2023 both the USFL and XFL announced that they plan to merge. What form this will exactly take is unknown but it will certainly help the USFL reach its intended gambling audiences as the Vegas Vipers are an existing XFL team which the USFL could plow its contemporary gambling campaigns.
Ford Field is Very Close to a Casino
Ford Field is one of the prominent venues for the USFL as it hosts the home games for both the Michigan Panthers and the Philadelphia Stars. Supporters of these teams (and the visiting fans) can extend their day out with a few hands of poker after the game by visiting Hollywood Casino at Greektown. This establishment is less than half a mile away from Ford Field and easily walked to in around 10 minutes, making it ideal for USFL fans who also like a wager.
David Rivers: A Name for Poker
During the 2022 season, the New Jersey Generals acquired a man with a great poker name: David Rivers. Sadly for the cornerback, he was more of a flop at the franchise and wasn’t taken on for the subsequent season. Since then, he’s gone to the Canadian League where he was on the practice squad before being cut by the Montreal Alouettes.
Gambling on the USFL?
The very best sportsbook operators will allow you to bet on a rich variety of different sports. While the American Football section can be dominated by offers and markets on the NFL, if you dig a little deeper most American platforms will allow you to wager on the USFL nowadays. So if you know your Birmingham Stallions from your New Orleans Breakers, you can potentially make a profit by predicting the results and scores from the USFL fixtures.
As this market is growing there is a very popular podcast which is dedicated to this very subject. It’s called the USFL Gambling Podcast and is the #1 ranked podcast which covers the USFL.
The Podcast That Likes Poker
If you’re a USFL fanatic already, then you probably tune into the USFL show podcast every time a new episode hits. Did you know however that the podcast has an extensive shop section on their website? As well as being able to buy items like t-shirts, hats, etc. you can also find a branded The USFL Show podcast playing cards. Pretty cool! So the next time you have your friends round to watch the big USFL match you can play a few friendly hands of poker as well.
