PROOF THAT THE Canadian Football League (CFL) does things a little differently from its more powerful gridiron rival to the south came this week when the online gaming brand Bodog.net signed as the CFL's exclusive free-to-play sports gaming and poker partner.
The three-year agreement, valued by Frontloaded at between $2m and $3m per annum, includes category exclusivity, digital advertising, in-stadium promotion and field logo and stadium signage placement for all CFL play-offs games and at the showcase Grey Cup final.
Under the deal, Bodog becomes the leagues’ fantasy football partner while also offering fans of Canadian gridiron various free-to play, prize-winning contests related to team performances.
Free-to-play is key to the third plank of the Bodog.net platform, which offers poker at no cost to the player, allowing players to learn the game without losing money.
It’s this free-to-play distinction which allows the CFL to make the deal with Bodog.net, despite the Bodog brand’s clear association with online gambling and sports betting in other markets, notably Europe, under the bodog.eu umbrella.
Certainly, it’s an ambiguity that the NFL would not tolerate.
In terms of its fantasy league offering, the NFL licensed its fantasy game to CBS Sportsline for a decade, but took it back in-house in late 2009. That apart, the NFL does not support any gaming activity that connects prize-winning to NFL performances.
The NFL, however, has made a concession in relation to state or local lotteries. The change in policy was unanimously approved by the franchise owners in 2009 allowing NFL teams to put their logos on lottery scratch cards across the United States.