For many bookmakers, those in Vegas and those online, 2024 was not a great year, and that's putting it mildly. It was actually one of the worst years many can remember with many of the bigger NFL teams constantly hitting the spread leaving bookies reeling. The L.A Times broke the story and stated that, "The problem for Las Vegas sports books is that many popular NFL teams beat the point spread during the regular season, and with many bettors combining their picks in parlays. $20 wagers turned into payouts of up to more than $1,000, depending on how many winning bets they combined". One bookmaker said that the regular NFL season had provided him with a staggering financial hit. The general public has more information available now than at any other time and it seems that they are using it, making the average bettor far more sharper than they were just a few years ago. Week 9 provided the bookies with an absolute nightmare with every favorite coming in strong as well as two dogs that had been massively backed. Will things get better during the play-offs? We will wait and see however it doesn't look good for the bookies when it comes to paying out futures bets either as many fans had backed their team pre-season to win the Superbowl. Seattle, Minnesota and Indianapolis all have large fan bases and were all at pretty long odds for the title, however all three made it to the play-offs leaving some bookies not even wanting to watch the games. We all know that its swings and roundabouts and that the bookies will bounce back at some stage and it's great for the sports betting industry to have so many happy bettors....you know they will be back next season.
