The Super Bowl already has a winner

Plus: An NFL ownership coup, a really dumb question, and the truth about your Super Bowl squares.

Welcome back to Club Sportico, where we break down the intersection of sports and money—with an extra bit of humor and opinion. Here’s a six-pack of items to get you ready for the Super Bowl.

The Sportico Story of the Week 📈: There’s a fascinating new development in sports betting, where fintech companies have begun trying to offer markets similar to those at a FanDuel or DraftKings. It started with trading on the outcome of the 2024 presidential election—anodyne enough because regulated U.S. sportsbooks don’t yet offer political wagering. But now groups like Kalshi, Robinhood and Crypto[.]com have their sights set on the Super Bowl.

How big is the opportunity? What does the sports betting establishment think? And how about the rapidly shrinking U.S. government? Jacob and two other Sportico reporters teamed up this week for the most in-depth story on the topic to date. Read it here.

The Non-Sportico Story of the Week 🛡️: I’ve always said there are two NFLs. There’s the one that plays out on Sundays that draws 99.9% of the attention, then there’s the palace intrigue of the league’s ownership ranks, where there’s an endless churn of backroom dealing and power struggles.

Few people chronicle that second world better than ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. His recent appearance on Pablo Torre’s show is a must-watch for people curious about how the NFL is really run. This clip 👇 is queued up to one of the most interesting parts, when Don discusses a failed attempt by Jerry Jones to oust comissioner Roger Goodell.

What Made Me Laugh 🤡: If you haven’t noticed, Jameis Winston is on an all-time heater at the Super Bowl this week. In town with Fox Sports, the free agent quarterback is singing while giving bike tours, dancing in second lines, and doing great interviews. Here’s a glimpse of his NOLA shenanigans 👇