GeoComply Reports Massive NFL Week 1 Surge in Sports Betting Activity

GeoComply reported 99.8 million geolocation checks across its sportsbook customers during Week 1 of the National Football League (NFL) season, a 176% increase from two Sundays earlier, while new account sign-ups surged more than 310% to 135,700.

The numbers underscore the enormous pull the NFL continues to have with sports bettors, but Week 1 also provided an interesting snapshot of how the economics of football betting are changing, according to a Legal Sports Report (LSR) article.

GeoComply is a Vancouver-based anti-fraud and geolocation compliance technology company serving sportsbook clients worldwide.

NFL Betting Activity Surges

On the surface, Week 1 looked like an exceptionally bettor-friendly Sunday, as Casino.org reported earlier in the week.

As LSR reported, NFL teams combined for 791 points, tying 2012 for the most ever in an opening week, while setting Week 1 records for total touchdowns (93), offensive touchdowns (90), and rushing touchdowns (37).

Favorites went 12-4 straight up; overs went 9-6-1.

Offences Deliver Record Week

At Caesars Sportsbook, seven of the eight early afternoon favorites won outright, while six games went over the total, many reaching that mark by halftime. 

Favorites, overs, and touchdown scorers combined to create a bettor-friendly trifecta, Joey Feazel, head of football at Caesars Sportsbook, told Casino.org. Bettors only finally encountered some resistance with the Los Angeles Chargers’ upset loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

As LSR reported, the rapid growth of same-game parlays and player props means those traditional results are becoming increasingly unreliable indicators of whether bettors or sportsbooks ultimately came out ahead.

Bettors Get Early Breaks

As the LSR story detailed, and Circa confirmed, Circa Survivor, the Las Vegas-based football contest, reached over 25,000 entries going into Week 1 but over 8,000 of those entries would be eliminated, most of them losing on one game when the Chargers, favored by 8.5, were upset by the Cardinals. 

That was a sign that one of the weekend’s most popular legs also knocked out plenty of parlays.

Bettors are showing some appetite for another high-scoring weekend, with Overs accounting for three of BetMGM’s five most-bet Week 2 totals by ticket count: Vikings-Bears Over 48, Saints-Ravens Over 46, and Panthers-Falcons Over 44.