Las Vegas casinos are packed full of roulettes, slots and blackjack tables. However, a Sunday afternoon doesn’t necessarily see traffic in these regions as punters are busy betting on football games. Now Detroit casinos are wondering how to make sports betting work for their businesses.

Casino officials spill the beans

Westgate Casino officials suggest that hundreds of gamblers gather at their massive auditorium during every football game. They watch it on giant LED screens and wager on their favorite teams. Gaming experts suggest that Detroit casinos could experience similar results. However, the only problem in the city is that their casino owners are connected with sporting teams.

Marian Ilitch owns the MotorCity Casino in the city. Ilitch’s family owns the Red Wings hockey team and the Tigers baseball team. Cleveland Cavaliers owners Dan Gilbert is also the owner of Greektown Casino.

The city’s gambling supporters are excited about the sports betting experiences of different US states. New Jersey is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the sports betting legalization house. The city’s three casinos could open a sportsbook and rebound their decreasing revenues.

The city’s casinos have struggled to make money after the nearby state of Ohio opened new casinos in 2012. Of these, Toledo casinos chipped away at Detroit’s income for two years, before they eventually started rising for the next two years. Still, the revenue of three Detroit casinos in 2016 was $1.3 billion, a little shy of its $1.4 billion mark set in 2012.

Detroit’s sports betting potential

According to gambling research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, illegal sports betting engaged 12 to 15 million punters in the US and earned $3 billion in revenue, in 2017. Their managing director, Chris Grove said that sports betting customers are different from the typical casino crowd. If the city’s casinos are able to tap into this market, they could witness new customers and increased revenues.

The experts said that the impact of sports betting on casinos connected to pro sporting teams is unclear. A highly likely outcome of sports betting in the state could be a prohibition of casinos owned by sporting teams. This will help in removing the chances of corruption and conflicts of interest. Major League Baseball already prohibits team owners from owning casinos. It only allowed Marian Ilitch to run MotorCity casino after she declared that she is not connected with her family’s ownership of the Tigers.