The resulting research will provide insights into the impact of responsible gambling messages used by media in covering the global sports wagering and gaming industry

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) International Gaming Institute (IGI) is excited to announce the recipients of the 2024 ESPN Research Fellowships. This year’s selection showcases a diverse group of scholars whose innovative project proposals will be pivotal in advancing knowledge on responsible gambling messaging in sports media.

Fellowships have been awarded to:

• Dr Hannah Borenstein, Harper-Schmidt Postdoctoral Fellow and Collegiate Assistant Teaching Professor at The University of Chicago
• Chance Dow, a Master’s student at the University of Memphis’ Tennessee Institute of Gambling Education and Research
• Dr Eric R Louderback, Research and Evaluation Scientist in the Division on Addiction at Harvard Medical School
• Dr Brian Petrotta, Assistant Professor of Sport Media and Communication at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and Dr Travis Bell, Associate Professor of Digital and Sports Media at the University of South Florida

Each of the Fellowship proposals address unique facets of responsible gambling messaging in sports media. As the intersection between sports and gambling continues to evolve, the work of these scholars is essential in promoting healthy gambling practices and awareness.

These projects will provide insights into practical strategies that policy-makers and the industry can adopt to help safeguard the wellbeing of sports enthusiasts and the public at large.

Advertisement

Dr Borenstein will explore the relatively untapped domain of track and field and marathon running. Dr Borenstein’s investigation focuses on the implications of integrating gambling into mainstream broadcasting and spectating of these sports.

Dow will investigate the nuances of gendered gambling and responsible gambling. Dow’s study examines how to enhance the effectiveness of responsible gambling messages, particularly among college student populations.

Dr Louderback will analyze video-based sports gambling advertisements on social media. Dr Louderback’s research looks at how responsible gambling messages influence advertisement effectiveness and demonstrates the use of publicly available social media data in advancing knowledge in responsible gambling.

Dr Petrotta and Dr Bell will analyze actual gambling broadcasts during ‘March Madness’ competitions. The study explores how responsible gambling messages are conveyed and will provide crucial insights into real-world practices during live sports broadcasts.

“The IGI is tremendously excited about these projects,” the Executive Director for the IGI, Dr Brett Abarbanel, said. “A key goal of this initiative is to support innovative and impactful research to better understand the rapidly changing global sports and betting environment. This research represents a broad range of perspectives on how gambling is represented in sports media and holds important implications for all gambling stakeholders.”

Advertisement

“ESPN is proud to work with IGI to advance responsible gaming standards through this comprehensive research,” ESPN Corporate Citizenship Vice-President Kevin Martinez said. “These diverse research projects will help to inform how the industry can continue to respond to and improve upon responsible gaming practices in the sports entertainment ecosystem.”

Each research fellowship lasts for a duration of six (6) months. The results of the research will be featured in an IGI webinar in early 2025.

Revolutionary fantasy sports platform comes to market in time to extend the football season for thousands following the Super Bowl

The Legacy Fantasy Sports team has re-branded the company with the launch of its all-new, revolutionary fantasy sports app titled On Demand Daily Fantasy Sports (ODDFS) and took home the award for Best Product Experience: Start-Up at the Fantasy Sports & Gaming Association (FSGA) Winter Conference in Las Vegas.

ODDFS is available in the App Store and on Google Play. The change is not only in name but is also more representative of the innovative and first of its kind platform that allows players to be able to create and play in a fantasy sports contest, anytime, 24/7/365 days per year at the snap of your fingers.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled to win the Best Product Experience award at the FSGA Winter Conference,” the co-founder of ODDSF, John Latella, said. “The ODDFS app is literally for everyone and was designed specifically with kids and families in mind. This is why it was important to keep it a non-gambling platform that appeals to casual and die-hard fantasy enthusiasts alike who still want to engage in fantasy sports when there are no ‘live’ sporting events available or their favorite sports season has come to an end.”

Advertisement

As a social gaming fantasy sports app, ODDFS erases the limitations of traditional fantasy sports by allowing friends, co-workers, fans and family members of all ages to actively play in public contests or create their own daily fantasy sports (DFS) contests, no matter the sport, during times when no other platform can be active because there are no ‘live’ sporting events. With ODDFS, they can join or create a DFS contest 24/7/365, utilizing the players of today alongside the grinders, all stars and hall of famers that have stepped on the field over the last 20 years.

ODDFS proprietary technology allows fans to build a roster with players from today and legends of the past, extending each sport’s fantasy season from a few months to every day of the year. Create your roster with over 5,000 NFL players that have taken the field from 2000 to the present and over 30,000 players representing over 290 colleges and universities that have taken the field from 2013 to the present. Check out how we achieve this, as well as our revolutionary in-app functionality.

ODDFS unique in-app functionality includes social networking, weekly, monthly, yearly and all-time leaderboards for each sport, the DFS IQ, which provides the latest fantasy sports news in partnership with Fantasy Pros, customizable public and private leagues and a first-of-its-kind rewards program where users earn points based on the amount of contests that they play in that can be redeemed for in-app rewards.

“Winning this FSGA award is a thrilling achievement because we created ODDFS as a response to the lack of innovation and repetitive nature of the fantasy sports market,” the Chief Operating Officer for ODDFS, Ray Bonkowski, said. “The industry has been focused on sports betting and gambling, which we believe has left a large gap in the market. Our product was built to provide an option for new and existing fantasy sports fans during a period when ESPN, Yahoo, DraftKings, FanDuel and other operators cannot provide an NFL or college football DFS contest because there are no live games on the schedule.”

With over 350 million people playing fantasy sports worldwide, ODDFS believes that many of these are non-sports betting/non-gambling motivated and interested in playing whenever they want. Furthermore, in the United States alone there are 25 million people between the ages of 13 and 17 that currently cannot play DFS on any of the other platforms. We look forward to changing that with ODDFS. For media inquiries, affiliate and partnership opportunities and more information please contact Charlie Bernard at Charlie@ LegacyFantasySports. com.

Advertisement