Game on for mobile sports betting at HOF Village while retail sportsbook set for summer

CANTON − Michael Crawford stood on the site of a future indoor water park and hotel recently as heavy equipment clawed at dirt on the campus of the Hall of Fame Village.

Noisy machinery, however, couldn't mute the executive's enthusiasm for the retail sports betting venue being finished at the other end of the Hall of Fame Village entertainment campus.

"This is going to be a one-of-a-kind retail sportsbook," said Crawford, president and CEO of the Hall of Fame Resort and Entertainment Co., which is building the Village complex. "Meaning an immersive environment with food and beverage and the ability to place a bet and a lot of technology surrounding that."

The 10,000-square-foot BetRivers ― the name of the sportsbook ― is among the more than 20 retail sites licensed to offer in-person sports betting in Ohio. While some of the venues will start taking bets Jan. 1, the Hall of Fame Village site is scheduled to open in the summer.

Sports betting is just one part of the $600 million plus, football-themed Hall of Fame Village, which also includes a zip line and Ferris wheel-style ride, athletic fields, a sports dome for wrestling tournaments and other activities, and a restaurant and brewpub that are expected to open in January. All of it is being built around the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

Even before BetRivers opens, the Hall of Fame Village will be partnering on an online sports micro-betting app used on smartphones and managed by betr, a startup company whose co-founders include YouTube star and Cleveland area native Jake Paul. The Village is among nearly 25 mobile sports betting license holders.

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Micro-betting, a subset of live betting during a sporting event, are wagers placed with a smartphone on individual plays and moments in a game, including whether a drive in football ends with a touchdown, field goal, punt, fumble or turnover; will the next pass be completed in a football game; will the next at bat be a single, double, triple, home run, walk or out; and will a basketball player make zero, one or two free throws at the foul line.

Betr touts itself as the world's first micro-betting app, which can be downloaded for practice use before Jan. 1.

"In today's world, technology plays a big part of how guests and fans sort of engage," Crawford said. "So our sports betting partner with betr, (co-founders) Jake Paul and Joey Levy, (is) one of a kind again. The only micro-betting site out there, and I absolutely love it."

Hall of Fame Village mobile app betr will start taking bets Jan. 1

While sports betting isn't expected to be as much of a draw as the indoor water park, Hall of Fame Resort and Entertainment executives have been positioning the campus for a piece of the action since 2019.

Anne Graffice, executive vice president of public affairs for Hall of Fame Resort and Entertainment, said sports gaming is projected to be big business in Ohio in the coming years.

"That's a pretty cool (project) for us and a wild opportunity for us to really have an impact in an industry that we really feel is going to be wildly successful," she said of sports gaming.

"We have always been smart enough to diversify as a company," Graffice said of Hall of Fame Resort and Entertainment. And "this isn't our only egg in the basket."

Crawford said BetRivers and the betr app will be distinct experiences offering different types of wagering. BetRivers, comparable to more traditional sports betting, will be managed by Rush Street Interactive under a 10-year agreement.

"You go to those places because of the camaraderie, the fans, the cheering, everyone loves being together," Crawford said of a retail sports betting venue. "It's like being in a stadium."

More:Sports betting kiosks in Ohio: What you need to know

With a sportsbook on site, fans can place bets on sporting events, including while they watch the Pro Football Hall of Fame game or college football games at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, Crawford said.

Ohio also legalized sports betting on motor sports, pro tennis and golf, Esports, Olympic, international sporting events and horse racing.

Bets will not be permitted on high school games and youth sports, he said.

BetRivers will be located in the Hall of Fame Village's Fan Engagement Zone, a sports entertainment area that will include The Brew Kettle craft brewery and a TopGolf Swing Suite, as well as rooftop views of Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

Operating hours for the sportsbook have not been set, Graffice said. But "I don't foresee ours being around the clock."

BetRivers will have a "very high-quality food and beverage provider (yet to be announced)," she said. "It becomes a really cool place to dine and place a sports bet in a high-level environment."

'Watching the game to bet and betting to watch the game.'

For the first time, Ohio residents will be able to legally wager on sports from the comfort of their living room or wherever they can access a smartphone.

In the past, Ohioans could legally bet on sports online only if they were physically present in another state where mobile sports gambling is legal, said Jessica Franks, spokesperson for the Ohio Casino Control Commission.

Hall of Fame Restort:Site progressing with village development, sports betting business

"Sportsbook operators use geolocation and other tools to verify that an individual is actually able to place a wager," she said.

For example, someone from Kentucky or another state will be able to create an account and visit Ohio and place a wager on their cellphone, Franks explained.

Bets and odds will vary between the Hall of Fame Village's mobile app and retail site.

Franks said micro-betting isn't practical at a retail sportsbook because of the speed of the wagers being made while a sporting event unfolds in real time. Wagering on sports, particularly the next play or at bat, is a way for fans to be more entertained and engaged, Crawford said.

"And I think that was lost for a while," he said. "People go to games now and they're on their devices, they're texting ... (or chatting) or whatever they're doing. Now they're going to be on their devices but they're going to be watching the game to bet and betting to watch the game."

Retail sites like BetRivers will accept wagers on the outcomes of sporting events, as well as during live action (such as betting on the point spread in the second quarter of an NBA game), and proposition bets (also known as prop bets), which are side wagers on parts of the game that may have nothing to do with the final score. Prop bets include picking the first player to record a basket in an NBA game, the first team to score 14 points in a football game, the team with the most strikeouts and the length of the national anthem at the Super Bowl.

'You can watch a game and place a bet wherever you wish.'

Construction on the exterior of BetRivers is finished; interior work is underway. BetRivers will be located in a separate building next to the Constellation Center for Excellence at the west end of the stadium, across from a Ferris wheel-style amusement park ride easily visible from Interstate 77.

"I'm hoping by summer that's going to be open," Crawford said of BetRivers.

"We think you're going to have a great time no matter where you're at on campus, and you can walk, (with) a lot of engaging digital boards where you can watch games and things," he said. "You can watch a game and place a bet wherever you wish."

Reach Ed at 330-580-8315 and ebalint@gannett.com

On Twitter @ebalintREP

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Hall of Fame Village in Canton opening BetRivers retail sportsbook