NBA strikes betting data deals with Sportradar, Genius Sports

[November 29, 2018]    (Reuters) - The National Basketball Association (NBA) struck its first betting data partnerships, allowing Genius Sports and Sportradar AG to distribute data to licensed sports betting operators in the United States.

A general view American Airlines Arena court prior to a game between the Washington Wizards and the Miami Heat. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

The partnerships cover official betting data for all NBA and WNBA games, including the preseason, regular season and playoffs, the NBA said on Wednesday.

For years, the four major U.S. professional sports leagues fought states' efforts to legalize sports betting, arguing it would lead to game fixing.

But in May, the U.S. Supreme Court threw out a federal ban against sports betting, paving the way for states to legalize, regulate and tax the activity.

Genius Sports and Sportradar will also be authorized to distribute betting data products on a real-time basis to licensed sports betting operators and platform providers.

(Reporting by Arjun Panchadar in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)

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