BetMGM shows off new features for sports bettors ahead of NFL kickoff

A new football season has arrived and one online sportsbook operator with strong Las Vegas ties is rolling out a handful of upgrades for Nevada sports bettors.

BetMGM Sportsbook unveiled its revamped app ahead of Thursday night’s NFL regular season opener between the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens. The all-new sports gambling product features the well-publicized multistate single wallet, a multigame/multibet parlay creator, expanded prop bet menus and a new user signup bonus that is among the highest in Nevada.

“We’re so excited to say that we’re offering the best experience to Nevada customers that we’ve offered to date,” said Cory Nebel, head of West Coast regional marketing for BetMGM. “There’s a new BetMGM in town.”

BetMGM is the product of a 50/50 partnership between Las Vegas-based MGM Resorts International and Entain plc, a European online gaming operator. The app launched in 2018 following the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, which opened the door for single-game sports wagering in states outside Nevada.

In August, BetMGM became the first U.S. online sportsbook operator to allow multi-jurisdictional use allowing customers to use one account to seamlessly fund an account and bet on games anywhere the app is available. BetMGM is available in 29 states.

Matt Prevost, chief revenue officer of BetMGM, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal last month that he expects rival companies — such as Caesars Sportsbook — to attempt to replicate the technology. But, for now, BetMGM stands alone.

“What this does is it enables our consumers who travel in from other states to seamlessly use their wallet while they’re in Vegas,” Prevost told the LVRJ. “They still obviously have to go through the sign-up process on property and sign up in Nevada like always. But this connects the entire experience for them as customers. We’ve been working on this for years.”

Through its arrangement with MGM Resorts, BetMGM customers can visit any of nine retail sportsbook locations on the Las Vegas Strip to sign up. They are at Bellagio, Aria, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, MGM Grand, Park MGM, Mandalay Bay, New York-New York, Luxor and Excalibur. The free app is available for download in the Apple Store or Google Play.

Nebel said the app’s new features are the result of listening to what sports bettors have been asking for.

For example, the BetMGM same-game parlay plus is an extension of a product most online users are already familiar with. The SGP-plus allows customers to combine multiple parlay bets into one larger parlay wager. A three-way parlay on the KC/BAL game could be combined with a four-way parlay bet from this weekend’s Buffalo Bills and Arizona Cardinals game.

“Everything that we do is with the customer experience in mind,” he said. “In the past, we’ve listened, we’ve heard feedback. Our whole world revolves around what the guest is asking for.”

As for what bets are seeing the most action, Lamarr Mitchell, director of trading for MGM Resorts and BetMGM, said the home team always draws money and attention.

The Raiders’ win total for the 2024-25 season is O/U 6.5. Maxx Crosby is third in Defensive Player of the Year odds at MGM books.

“It’s always Raiders, Raiders, Raiders,” he said while sitting in the BetMGM Sportsbook at Mandalay Bay on Thursday morning. “We have a very strong fan base here that supports the Raiders and, as I like to say, they put their money where their mouth is.”

Mitchell said the Raiders winning Super Bowl 59 is the biggest liability for MGM sportsbooks. The Raiders are not drawing huge money or a high volume of tickets, he said, but the team’s high odds — currently at 66 to 1 — could be a huge hit for the book if the Silver and Black were to win it all in February.

The NFL’s opening night matchup is attracting lots of sharp money, Mitchell said. The underdog Ravens (+3) are getting most of the late action.

Monday night’s game between the San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets is leaning toward the West Coast team, with total tickets written at about 2 to 1 as of Thursday morning.

David Danzis can be contacted at ddanzis@reviewjournal.com. Follow AC_Danzis on X.