Bettormetrics analyzes college football and NFL suspension times

(PRESS RELEASE) -- Bettormetrics, a sports odds intelligence firm providing competitive sports odds data and insight to the sports betting industry, released their latest report, a one-week comparison of suspension times between top operators during week eight of the college football season and week nine NFL games. The analysis found that while operators exhibit short suspensions during NFL games, there are still significant improvements to be made on suspension times during college football games.

Suspension is when a sportsbook periodically shuts down betting lines in a sporting event to readjust the odds based on activity within the event, while uptime is the amount of time they are accepting live wagers during the game. Bettormetrics’ analysis found that DraftKings and FanDuel were suspended for the least and second least amount of time during NFL games, respectively, and the two operators flipped when it came to college football – with FanDuel leading the operators that were analyzed.

DraftKings, who was previously noted as a market leader in past Bettormetrics’ reports on NBA and NFL season-long suspension times, suffered the biggest drop off during college games when compared to its NFL suspension times. On average, operators' suspension times were 8.7% worse during college games. Hard Rock saw the smallest drop in performance in comparison.

“The NFL is clearly the American bettor’s favorite competition so it is only a matter of time before sportsbooks shift their focus to its younger sibling, college football, seeking improvements in suspension, uptime and overall trading performance,” said Sabin Brooks, Bettormetrics’ Chief Revenue Officer. “Those who master suspension in college games will ultimately come out on top. Doing so is a win-win because the bettor will have an improved betting experience meaning they will keep coming back and the operator will be able to bring in more handle, meaning a fly wheel of better product, customer experience and sportsbook profitability.”

“While there are challenges with the availability, quality and speed of scouting data for college football, there is clear demand for betting on NCAA football. As such, operators are going to need to find solutions to overcome the tremendous suspension differences between the NFL and college football,” said Robert Urwin, Bettormetrics’ co-founder and CEO. “While we recognize that there are significantly more college games every weekend during football season than NFL, there is work to be done. With an estimated gross gaming revenue of over $800 million coming in during college football season, sportsbook operators will continue to lose out on potential revenue unless suspension times are addressed.”