The Circa Sports Million doesn’t offer totals or moneylines for weekly selections. Football betting lines are created by individual sportsbooks. A betting line will move based on how much money is wagered on the side. The sportsbook is along the Main Street wall. It is viewable from both levels and takes up around 15 percent of the casino space. The only video poker at Circa that is not on a bar top can be found near the sportsbook on the first level and in the entrance of the high limit slot room.
States around the US are proving that opening a full-service sports betting operation isn’t all that easy. A brand-new sportsbook operator in Nevada opened for business.
The first Circa Sports retail sportsbook opened at the Golden Gate hotel and casino in downtown Las Vegas over the weekend. Not only did the retail sportsbook open inside of the casino, but it opened with fully operational technology.
Stadium Technology provides two betting kiosks just outside of the sportsbook at Golden Gate. They also provide all of the technology for the Circa Sports mobile app.
… and they said it couldn’t be done at the same time.
Circa Sports retail sportsbooks
Circa Sports opened its first sportsbook on June 1 at Golden Gate casino. The sportsbook operation, owned by Derek Stevens, will open its second location in a couple of weeks at another one of Stevens’ Las Vegas casinos: The D Las Vegas. He was beaming with excitement when he chatted with The Lines about his new sportsbook operation.
Circa Sports will open another retail sportsbook in December 2020 when Circa Las Vegas is scheduled to open. While Golden Gate and The D sportsbooks are small in size, Circa will offer a huge multilevel sportsbook with the largest sportsbook screen in the world.
The sportsbook at Golden Gate is essentially a sports betting desk. Stevens calls this their “boutique” sportsbook. The accessible parking, attentive staff and great lines are why he expects people to visit the Golden Gate to place their wagers.
The next Circa Sports location at The D will include a bar but will mostly be a venue to place wagers. The sportsbook at Circa, on the other hand, will offer more than 350 seats for guests to watch and wager on the games. Unfortunately, that’s still more than a year away from opening.
Circa Sports could expand into other casinos in Nevada or other states in the future, but Stevens is focused on getting the Nevada operation started.
Circa Sports mobile app
Stadium Technology provides the technology for the Circa Sports mobile app. Many Las Vegas sportsbooks (Westgate, Caesars, etc.) use this technology for the backend of their sports betting app and Miomni for the front end.
Circa Sports joins CG Technology as the only Nevada sportsbook operator to use Stadium Technology for their entire app. The two apps are similar, but there’s one significant difference. The Circa Sports app allows users also to place picks for the Circa Sports Million football contest.
Circa Sports kiosks
Stadium Technology also provides the kiosks for Circa Sports. Golden Gate opened with two kiosks for guests to place wagers. They’re simple to use and intuitive. More kiosks will be placed at The D Las Vegas and Circa Las Vegas when they open.
Sports betting kiosks are exploding in popularity around the country. Nearly 75% of wagers made at Pennsylvania retail sportsbooks are made using kiosks.
William Hill has offered kiosks in Nevada for years. The technology is also expanding at Las Vegas retail sportsbooks. Stadium Technology also has kiosks installed at Caesars Palace, The Linq and Treasure Island.
Stadium Technology also provides the screens at each ticket writing station. These screens show the wagering ticket before printing. This allows customers to make sure their wager is correct before being handed a betting slip. This is a nice touch that more sportsbooks should offer.
Why Circa Sports?
Stevens told The Lines that Circa Sports is focusing on the customer. The staff is expected to be “very customer oriented.” His sportsbook staff plans to use a lot of creativity with odds. Stevens went on to say, “We’re going to be very creative” with some of the odds and lines they provide.
They plan on offering fair lines daily with a combination of futures betting options for tourists that might want to just place a quick bet for or against their team when visiting.
Circa Sports is offering “Yes/No” on most futures. NFL and MLB are the only futures available right now. NHL and NBA should be posted after their respective seasons are over.
Their “no juice” promotion on opening day, brought a lot of people to the grand opening of Circa Sports at the Golden Gate. Stevens told The Lines that they could “take it in the pants” because of all the sharp action.
Sports betting infrastructure
The Nevada Gaming Control Board has the experience to offer a solid infrastructure for new sports betting ventures. When Stevens sat down with The Lines, he said: “this isn’t Nevada’s first rodeo.” Having set rules made opening a new sportsbook operation relatively simple.
Some of the states legalizing sports betting are just learning while they go. He “likes what Iowa did” because they followed many of the same regulations as Nevada. Time will tell if they’ll be successful but Stevens sees success in their future, but he’s bullish on Iowa.
States just starting to legalize sports betting are trying to create new models for sportsbook operators. New Jersey is building on the foundation established by Nevada and improving access to sports betting. Other states have different priorities and are taking a different tact.
Leave it to good ole Nevada to let a new sportsbook operator launch retail and online sportsbooks with the latest technology. Maybe the state will allow customers to fund mobile accounts remotely without walking into a casino someday.
Circa Sportsbook Lines Line
Introduction
At the time of this writing (August 2019) downtown Las Vegas casino entrepreneur Derek Stevens is building a sports-themed hotel and casino in what was formerly the Las Vegas Club. This is the first fresh construction (as opposed to a remodeling) of a hotel in downtown in decades, so I welcome something new.
His existing downtown property D used to have a Leroy's franchise, which changed to Cal Neva. However, he decided to go it alone at his properties of the D, Golden Gate, and upcoming Circa with what is known as 'Circa Sports.' As a supporter of as much competition as possible in Las Vegas, I welcome a new sports book family.
On August 29, 2019 I dropped into both existing outlets to have a look. Both of them are not much more than a counter to make bets. The D offers more in the way of amenities, with some tables and barstools. It is also right next to a sports-themed bar. However, the important thing should be the value they offer in the odds. Following is what I found.
MLB: As usual, 20-cent totals and run lines. Money lines are nicely 10-cents. They start to break away from 10-cents early, but they don't move suddenly to 15-cents. As an example, one pair of money lines was +122/-133.
NFL: As usual, 20-cent sides and totals. The money lines look similar to everybody else.
Parlays: The off-the-board parlays are better than average. Their progression goes: 2.6, 6, 11, 22, 42, 85, 160. The only books more competitive are William Hill and Jerry's Nugget, but not by much.
NFL Teasers: Circa NFL teasers are below average, compared to the other Vegas sports books. Here is their progression for 6-point NFL teasers: 0.8, 1.5, 2.5, 4, 6, 8, 10.
College Football Teasers: Circa college football teasers are about average, compared to the other Vegas sports books. Here is their progression for 7-point college football teasers: 0.8, 1.5, 2.5, 4, 6, 8, 10 (the same as 6-point NFL teasers).
Where Is Circa Sportsbook
NBA Teasers: Circa NBA teasers are very strong. In fact, second to Jerry's Nugget only. Here is the progression of their 5-point NBA teaser odds: 0.8, 1.5, 2.5 4, 6, 8.
Soccer: In soccer game with three possible outcomes, including a tie, I find the average house edge is 5.8%, which is competitive.
Futures: The future odds were more competitive than most places. Assuming each bet had the same house edge for the same event, here are some I sampled:
- Major League Soccer Championship: 19.9%
- WNBA: 15.6%
- NASCAR: 26.4%
- NHL: 16.6%
- NBA: 37.5%
I should mention that at the time of this review, Circa Sports was hosting a 'no juice' NFL contest, with a guaranteed $1.5 million prize pool. I always respect any tournament where the pot isn't raked.
Finally, I'd like to give three cheers to Circa Sports for having an expiration policy of 365 days. I think one can judge how much a casino cares for its customers, in part, by how long they will honor a sports or slot ticket.
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