NC Sharp

What does it take to become a sharp bettor? Sam and Brad Eberwein, brothers and hosts of Durham’s own Bull City Bets podcast, are trying to figure that out. They launched the podcast last year, before North Carolina legalized sports betting, to track this journey. The podcast involved Sam and Brad making hypothetical picks on NFL and NHL games, discussing pick strategy, and reflecting on betting outcomes.

The North Carolina online sports betting industry finally broke even in the month of September. Despite promotional spending increasing significantly in September due to the onset of football season, gross wagering revenue (GWR) totals more than doubled from last month, sending the collective NC online sports betting industry into the black for the first time. North Carolina online sportsbooks grossed $70,062,945 in September, the state’s second-highest total on record.

UNC football is 1-0 to start the season, but an injury to starting quarterback Max Johnson has dampened the mood in Chapel Hill. The injury has also gotten a mixed response from sportsbooks over the team’s ACC Championship odds. In the third quarter of North Carolina’s win over Minnesota, Johnson got sacked and fell awkwardly. In the worst of outcomes, he was carted off the field and did not return.

With July’s revenue totals in the books, the North Carolina sports betting industry is $24,701,407 from breaking even for the first time. The state generated $327,970,314 in paid wagering revenue (total bet spending) and paid out customers $295,386,205 last month. As the North Carolina Lottery Commission (NCLC) reported on the earnings, “In July, the gross wagering revenue was $42,226,040.

Visitors to Fayetteville may stumble across a surprising historic marker on Gillespie Street. There are three facts on the small marker which juts about seven feet into the North Carolina sky. One of those facts is true, one is not true, and the other is misrepresented. The true fact found on the state historical marker is a sensational sports tidbit: Babe Ruth smacked his first professional home run in Fayetteville, more than 100 years ago.

Strong opposition to North Carolina casinos has come from the three counties proposed to house a casino–Anson, Nash, and Rockingham. Interestingly, two of the counties rank among the highest in the state for underwater mortgages. Residents in Rockingham and Nash, two of the proposed counties for casinos, are among the state’s highest percentage of homeowners who owe more on their mortgages than the market value of their houses, creating negative equity.

The North Carolina Lottery Commission released its first full-month report on NC sports betting revenue since mobile betting launched on March 11. The total handle, or amount bet, during April 2024 exceeded expectations at $648.9 million for the state’s eight licensed operators. Of that total, bettors were paid out $538.4 million. Gross betting revenue totaled $105.3 million for the month.

Sunday’s NCAA Basketball Women’s National Championship Game between South Carolina and Iowa set records as the most bet women’s sporting event in history. The Gamecocks won the game, 87-75, finishing off a perfect season, and avenging their only loss in the last two seasons. The championship concludes a tournament that included many compelling storylines, including the run by North Carolina State to the Final Four and Caitlin Clark’s last run at a championship.

North Carolina saw a 56% week-over-week increase in geolocation check-ins during the first weekend (Thursday-Sunday) of March Madness, Danny Dirienzo, senior director of risk services at GeoComply, tells NCSharp. That translates into 19.5 million geolocation checks placed at NC sports betting apps last weekend.

In our coverage of local responses to the launch of North Carolina online sports betting, we reached out to Sam and Brad Eberwein, the hosts of the Bull City Bets podcast. The Eberwein brothers are NC natives, huge NC sports fans, and now hosts of a podcast tracking their efforts to become NC betting sharps. NCSharp interviewed them about their early impressions of NC sportsbook apps. Choosing apps and the sign-up process Eight online sportsbooks went live in North Carolina on March 11.