Legal sports betting had "big influence" on growing NFL ratings, says NY Giants co-owner

New York Giants co-owner Jonathan Tisch said that legalized sports betting has had a significant role in improved NFL television ratings.

“That is certainly a big influence,” Tisch told CNBC on Thursday. “Obviously, if you’re betting on a certain game, you’re going to watch to see what happens and you’re going to watch until the bitter end because there are many games that are won on a field goal with three seconds left.”

Tisch also said fantasy football continues to play a role in fans choosing to bypass buying a ticket and going to the stadium, instead opting to stay home or go to a bar to watch on TV.

Through Monday, TV viewership for NFL games is up more than 5% from last year, to 16.7 million people, while digital viewership has risen around 49% compared with 2018, according to CNBC’s Julia Boorstin. NFL ratings grew by about 5% on average last season, after two years of decline.

Tisch said he believes the impact of sports betting will continue to grow, suggesting there will be a day when a sports fan could place a bet from inside the stadium. “I think the NFL is getting ready for it,” Tisch said in response to a question about whether the Giants were specifically preparing for it. The team plays its home games in New Jersey, which has legalized sports betting.

Due to the NFL’s revenue-sharing structure among its 32 teams, decisions about how to distribute betting revenue would need to take place at a level beyond just one franchise, Tisch said. But, he said, “I’m sure the NFL is in constant conversation about how all this is going to unfold.”