"The kids have Christmas, I have the Super Bowl,” said Jeremiah Kozlowski of Kutztown.
As the saying goes, if you can’t beat 'em, join 'em.
“This Super Bowl I was very confident. I just didn’t believe in the Rams,” said
And these fans were joining in for some quick cash.
“Truthfully, I didn’t have rooting interest in anybody, so it made a boring game a little bit more exciting,” said Brad Diodato of Harrisburg.
The first Super Bowl since the Supreme Court ruled states could legalize sports betting attracting large crowds to the six sports books currently operating in Pennsylvania, including Hollywood Casino in East Hanover Township.
“I think it’s starting to show that it’s very popular with a lot of demographics in the state and the revenue that will be produced from it will be very, very significant for the state,” said Doug Harbach, spokesman for the PA Gaming Control Board.
People could bet on anything related to the game itself— from who the winner would be, to the MVP of the game, to who would score the first and last touchdown.
And officials with Penn National, which owns Hollywood Casino, say the majority of the wagers were in favor of New England.
“I bet the Patriots to win by 2.5 and obviously it was a winner, so I am happy,” said Diodato.
“I’m feeling great. It’s super exciting. And now I have a little extra money for March Madness," said Kozlowski.
There are no final tallies yet on how much money was wagered or paid out for those who placed bets, but we are told this is just the beginning of sports betting in Pennsylvania.
Harbach says they are working on online wagering now too, which should be available in the near future.
