SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The American Hockey League announced today that it has formed a new long-term data and streaming partnership for betting purposes with Genius Sports Group.
With 31 teams across the United States and Canada and affiliations with every NHL team, the AHL showcases some of the most talented young ice hockey players and coaches in the world. This exclusive partnership with Genius Sports Group will provide the league with a platform to expand its global audience, delivering data and live streams for betting purposes to sportsbook operators in the U.S. and globally.
As the trusted data partner to many of the largest organizations in world sport, including the NBA and the English Premier League, Genius Sports Group will have the exclusive rights to capture, for betting purposes, real-time team and player statistics from inside all 31 AHL arenas.
Sean O’Brien, co-host of The Sin Bin’s AHL podcast In The Corners, also works for Statstrack, a data and analysis company for hockey operations. With a finger firmly on the pulse of the statistics world, he believes this can only benefit both the AHL and their fans alike.
“This partnership sets up an interesting opportunity for the AHL and their fans. Sports betting has been shown to help increase fan engagement and recruit in other sports such as football and basketball. The NHL has started to dip it’s toe in those waters, and to see the AHL follow suit I think is a smart move. This partnership could also see more information become publicly available that currently isn’t like injury reports or time on ice, although that’s far from certain.”
The AHL’s official data will power Genius Sports Group’s live trading models and proprietary algorithms which will be offered alongside live broadcasts for over 1,200 events a year. This agreement bolsters Genius Sports Group’s ever-expanding portfolio of sports events, which now includes over 240,000 each year.
“We are excited about our partnership with Genius Sports,” said Chris Nikolis, Executive Vice President, Business for the AHL. “Our goal is to deliver the excitement and quality of AHL hockey to fans worldwide and to engage with them as effectively in the manner that suits them best. Genius Sports is an industry leader and we look forward to a long and successful relationship.”
Sean Conroy, Commercial Partnerships Director of Genius Sports Group, said:
“This partnership exemplifies the unique value we deliver to our sports and sportsbook partners in the U.S. and worldwide. With the right technology partner, sports leagues can proactively engage with the regulated betting industry to drive new revenues, increase engagement and expand their global audience. Simultaneously, our sportsbook partners benefit from our ever-expanding portfolio of premium data and video content.
“With regulated betting continuing to spread across the U.S., the AHL has recognized a unique opportunity to accelerate its global growth and we are excited to be working alongside such a dynamic league.”
Over 20 states in the US have either legalized or are in the process of legalizing sports betting after New Jersey won their case in the United States Supreme Court regarding a federal ban on such activities. With such normalization, more major leagues in North America have begun to explore and even embrace gambling regarding their leagues. The AHL becoming the first minor league to explore such an opportunity can only ensure the continuation and further development of intertwined relationships between leagues and sanctioned betting avenues.
