Basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal has apparently figured out a way to double dip in the world of sports betting, which isn’t all that surprising, given that the Inside the NBA co-host has turned into a prolific ambassador for various products and brands in many different industries.
Earlier this month it was announced that Shaq was signing on as a brand ambassador and “strategic consultant” with WynnBET, an online gambling product from Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts. In a statement, Shaq referenced “my friends at Wynn Resorts” when commenting on the new deal. The partnership was called “long-term,” though terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“Shaquille O’Neal has been a great friend of Wynn Las Vegas for many years,” commented Wynn Interactive CEO Craig Billings. Part of that longstanding relationship includes Shaq working with the casino company’s nightlife amenities. According to Best of Las Vegas, Shaq has called Vegas home (one of his multiple residences, to be fair) for two decades. Wynn Resorts co-founder Elaine Wynn reportedly is also on the board of The Shaquille O’Neal Foundation. Furthermore, Shaq is helping lead a public campaign for an NBA team in Las Vegas, which would benefit the casino industry there overall, including Wynn Resorts.
In order to link up with WynnBET, according to the presser, Shaq has to sell his small ownership stake in the Sacramento Kings. He reportedly owns 2-4% of the franchise since acquiring his shares in 2013. It was not announced whether Shaq now has any ownership stake in Wynn’s online gambling business. But Shaq does have an equity stake in rival sportsbook PointsBet through his endorsement of that sportsbook in Australia.
Smart double dipping?
The presser announcing the Shaq-WynnBET relationship stated that it’s a “category exclusive partnership.” A representative for Wynn told US Bets that the deal is exclusive for online gambling in the United States. The Wynn rep said he couldn’t comment on Shaq’s brand ambassador role for PointsBet in Australia. In recent months, Shaq has been featured in a number of PointsBet advertisements.
In order to get his services, PointsBet was willing to give him a piece of the company.
“We are delighted that Mr. O’Neal has agreed to take part of his consideration in the form of equity in PointsBet, which underscores the alignment and trust across our teams and our shared belief in the opportunities ahead for PointsBet,” PointsBet CMO and co-founder Andrew Fahey said in a statement about the deal with Shaq when it was announced in January.
PointsBet punts on Shaq to star in ads https://t.co/Ejgd9hSmf7
— John Stensholt (@JohnStensholt) January 25, 2021
The size of the stake wasn’t disclosed, and it apparently was for the company’s Australia-facing business, not its overall business, which now includes seven U.S. states following PointsBet’s launch in West Virginia this week.
Whatever the stake was, it was probably very small. In a $500 million deal announced last year, NBCUniversal acquired a 4.9% stake in PointsBet, with an option to eventually acquire up to 25%. That could eventually make NBC the single largest shareholder. According to a Simply Wall St report via Yahoo, the top 17 shareholders at PointsBet have a combined 50% ownership.
PointsBet ads in Australia involving Shaq have reportedly continued after the WynnBET announcement.
How much did pointsbet pay Shaq to chant “glory glory to south sydney” 😂
— Joshüa SD (@JoshTungcab_) August 16, 2021
gotta respect the pointsbet ad writer who pitched “shaq has an addiction and can’t stop gambling”
— The Evil Midnight Tweeter What Tweets at Midnight (@nicholas_payne) August 17, 2021
For PointsBet, the United States and Australia saw almost the same handle of roughly $490 million AUD (roughly $350 million USD) in the most recently completed quarter, according to a company financial report. However, PointsBet’s U.S. handle was up nearly 1,000% compared to the same quarter a year prior, so it won’t take long before its U.S.-facing handle is greater. Australia is still a much more lucrative market in terms of winnings from players, with about $43 million AUD ($31 million USD) in net win in Australia for the quarter compared to about $16 million AUD ($11.5 million USD) in the U.S.
Drew Brees snags PointsBet equity
While Shaq is confined to the Australian market for PointsBet, in July NFL legend Drew Brees inked a similar deal with PointsBet. In exchange for his services, Brees snagged an equity stake in PointsBet’s U.S. business. The presser announcing the deal said Brees will be a “significant PointsBet shareholder” as part of the exclusive, “multi-year” relationship. The equity stake wasn’t disclosed.
Does this mean that PointsBet had an interest in retaining Shaq’s services in the emergent U.S. market? They most likely did. It seems safe to speculate that WynnBET made Shaq a better offer, leveraging its longstanding ties to the NBA legend. PointsBet almost surely was interested in deepening its relationship with Shaq, but Wynn Resorts, one of the largest casino developers in the world, had the advantage.
That said, with the Shaq-PointsBet Australian relationship still in its infancy, it is quite possible PointsBet knew all along that Shaq wasn’t going to be available for a U.S.-facing brand ambassador role. His relationship with Wynn runs deep, seemingly making that relationship a better fit for him in the U.S.
It must have been a lucrative offer from Wynn. Shaq saw the value of his ownership stake in the Sacramento Kings more than triple in less than 10 years, and with NBA franchises still climbing in value thanks in large part to sports betting, he probably sold well before a peak. That said, California might not have mobile sports betting anytime in the near future, making the Kings less valuable.
Image: Ron Adar/Shutterstock.com
