Experts say gambling is on the horizon in Texas after Mavs owner Mark Cuban sold a majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks to Miriam Adelson, owner of Las Vegas Sands. He said it appears to be approaching.
Now, the NBA is further planting its flag in Texas by acquiring a stake in Dallas-based microbetting startup nVenue. Gambling and sports betting remain illegal in Texas, but this could be one of the NBA's first moves to further encourage the public to legalize.
“The NBA brings a lot of credibility, so this is a big win for us and a big win for Texas,” said Kelly Pracht, co-founder and CEO of nVenue. . “We want more for us, our friends and partners across the state. As we have raised money, only a few have come from Texas, but we wants to change that.”
Pracht declined to reveal details behind the deal, but Scott Kaufman Ross, the NBA's head of gaming and new business operations, will become nVenue's board observer as part of the deal. It is.
Microbetting allows fans to place small bets on what will happen next in a game, such as whether the batter will hit a home run or whether the kicker will make a field goal.
“Ever since fandom began, fans have always made micro bets. It's just an exchange between fans about what's going to happen in the next moment,” Pracht said. “What we've done is a bet centered around a game of runs where you can make a choice and sit there and wait and root for your choice. It's a great engagement mechanism.”
The Victory Park-based company uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to create possible scenarios for the next play. As a data provider, nVenue itself does not take bets. Instead, fans can bet using sportsbooks such as his Altenar, SB22, and Vibra.
Although nVenue is still in its early stages, Pracht said its technology has already processed billions of microbets.
The company hasn't wasted any time since getting involved with the NBA. It was accepted into the NBA Launchpad program in early 2023 and, with support from the league, was streamed live on League Pass during the NBA Finals.
During that time, nVenue has generated over 70,000 active users.
Texas is not yet among the states that will benefit from nVenue's technology, but Pracht said that is not a factor in the company's success.
“The fact that sports betting is not available in Texas does not concern us,” she said. “Our customers are sportsbooks serving the United States and the world. We are excited about the prospect of bringing sports betting to Texas, but we know it is a complex story. It is currently being actively addressed and discussed by others.”
The company was founded in 2018 and passed its core development stage in 2019. Since then, the company has expanded and now has 20 people developing technology for other leagues, including Major League Baseball, the NFL, and NASCAR.
While the company doesn't have any partnerships with MLB or the NFL as well as the NBA or NASCAR, Pracht said such a partnership is likely in the future.
This deal with the NBA is the culmination of Pracht's vision since his days at HP, when he led an advanced technology team. An avid sports fan and former athlete who grew up in West Texas, she saw a gap in sports betting and knew there would eventually be a market for her technology. she said.
“I think it was always my destiny to combine technology and sports here,” Pracht said. “I think we all saw the writing on the wall that PASPA was being phased out and knew that businesses needed serious technology to predict real-time sports.”
In 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 7-2 decision that PASPA (Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act) violates states' rights to enact their own laws regarding gambling and sports betting.
Pracht said nVenue will have more momentum going forward from this point as it is now able to expand its platform more freely.
“We're on the precipice of growth right now, so that's the biggest thing we're thinking about right now, keeping up with demand and getting licensed across the United States,” she said. “We need to be able to enable and build a company large enough to support our fans.”
