Super Bowl Outcome Impacts Vegas Sports Books
LAS VEGAS (KDKA/AP) - Super Bowl gambling is a big business, especially in Las Vegas, but Sunday's game didn't turn out too well for many casinos.
Nevada gambling regulators said on Tuesday, the 183 sports casino sports books won just over $724,000 combined.
The regulators said, fans wagered $87.5 million on Super Bowl XLV, an increase of 5.5 percent over last year. So, the casino's take was less than one percent of total wagers.
Heading into Sunday's game the Packers were 2 1/2 point favorites in most casinos. The Packers beat the Steelers 31-25, beating the spread and both teams combined for 56 points which helped bettors who gambled that the total score would be over 45 points.
Mike Lawton, a research analyst with the control board, said that while some casinos won, others had moderate losses.
"There wasn't anyone that lost anything mind-blowing," he said. "I think we were really worried about it being a loss - it could have been worse."
Casinos have lost once only once on the Super Bowl in the last 10 years, in 2008 when bettors gambled $92 million and casinos lost $2.57 million as the New York Giants beat New England, 17-14.
This year was the slimmest winning Super Bowl for casinos since 1998, when books won $472,000 on $77.2 million in wagers. The Denver Broncos beat Green Bay in that game, 31-24.
