Are Sportsbooks Betting On Parlay Ads?

Sports betting has quickly grown into an escapable part of the U.S. fan experience, and beyond just simple bets, there's been a major emphasis on parlays – where bettors can be encouraged to wager on longer odds because of the idea of bigger paydays. Of course, many of these bets feature larger payouts for a reason: They're riskier, and unlikely to occur.

The Wall Street Journal recently covered long-shot sports betting, and in particular, how TV advertising is related to the trend. Using iSpot data, the piece shows the upswing from 2022 to 2023 (along with a slight drop in 2024).

• In 2022, just 11% of DraftKings' est. national linear TV ad spend was dedicated to parlay-related messaging, but that number ballooned to 24% just a year later.
• While FanDuel started with a slightly larger emphasis on parlays (14.8% of spend), the brand has settled into having slightly less focused there.
• Birches Health shows an 18.2% profit margin for sportsbooks on these parlays – despite less than 18% of these bets winning for consumers.
• Sportsbooks also have other levers to push beyond parlays – including bonus bets, risk-free bets and other "deals" that create extra potential financial appeal around special or manufactured events.

Learn more about sports-related TV advertising and the latest big game spots at the iSpot Super Bowl ad center.