online sportsbook

"I am amazed at how often I am asked, even by our competitors, where the Bodog name comes from. Everyone seems to be looking for a great sentimental story of some sort; perhaps I named it after my boyhood dog Bo, or it was my endearing sports moniker, and so on. But the truth is that it was actually created scientifically. When I came up with the Bodog name, I did it using a formula.

I was at home, sitting in front of a domain name search site; I had a checklist beside me, which had all the criteria that the name had to meet. I put combinations of letters together that met these criteria, and then searched to see if I could get the root domain. Like a soft drink or new car name, Bodog was designed to sound aggressive and bear fewer than six letters. It also had to be an available URL.

Among the other criteria on my list: It had to be easy to remember and spell; it had to be entirely unlike any of the names used by our competitors; and it had to have the ability to create a personality.

We are focused on the Internet, so we have to control our name in this environment. If you cannot get the root domain of your name, it's just going to be that much more difficult to create a meaningful brand. You need everything focused down on a core brand without any of the naming distractions that are so prevalent in our industry.

In the end, there was a good list of names to consider. Bodog was chosen, and it is now easily the most recognizable brand name in the industry."

-Calvin Ayre, Bodog Founder
The History of a 21st Century Phenomenon

The Dot-com Era

When the dot-com world was buzzing with start-ups in the mid-1990s, one of the areas that saw significant growth was the offshore sports betting industry. While a majority of these start-ups failed, one, based in San Jose, Costa Rica, flourished.
"In 1995, I founded what would later become known as the Bodog.com Entertainment Group of Companies. At the time, I set out to establish a sportsbook, but more importantly, an organization and brand that could cross over into any industry," Bodog Founder Calvin Ayre says.

Ten years later, this media and entertainment giant boasts among its offerings, Costa Rica's first Internet-based sportsbook, currently licensed in the United Kingdom and Costa Rica; North America's fastest growing Internet poker room; a 60+ game flash and downloadable Internet casino room; an educational play-for-free poker site; a lifestyle and entertainment e-magazine; and a music label.

Its Most Valuable Resource
Bodog has surged to the forefront of the online gaming and entertainment industry, in large part because of the enthusiasm and dedication of its most valuable resource: its employees.

"When I founded Bodog, I was looking for a specific type of employee," Ayre says. "I wanted to hire someone who brought passion into the workplace. The management ensemble established 10 years ago is still with us today. These leaders continue to demonstrate their passion and commitment, and now can rely on 10 years of industry experience."

The Brand Recognition

To help build the Bodog name into a brand, the company launched some of the most innovative and mainstream marketing programs the online gaming industry has ever seen. From the popular "Bodog Girl" program to a well-regarded syndicated sports betting column, entitled "From the Frontlines", Bodog seemingly seized on all available opportunities to get its name into the open.

Following the success of its initial programs, Bodog would add a blog, "The Bodog Beat", the "Bodog Girl Search", the "5th Street" newsletter (a poker-centric publication), and "Bodog Nation" (a online gambling and lifestyle eZine), among other marketing initiatives.

All that content and expertise translated easily into mainstream media attention. ESPN, The New York Times, USA Today, CNN, CBS and VH1 are just a few of the media outlets that have turned to Bodog for betting information and commentary.
Innovation at its Best

In 2001, Bodog developed an in-house payment method that was an immediate success. Players were offered simple and easy-to-use Instant Deposits by Check. This no-fee payment method, which offered the fastest payouts in the industry, was a hit with Bodog players.

In early 2003, Costa Rica became one of a handful of countries to offer federal licensing for Internet sportsbook operations. Of course, Bodog was right there, eager to be the first licensee.

"When the Costa Rican government announced it would be offering a license, we were more than happy to sign up and pay the fee. We've even gone as far as making the actual license viewable to anybody who wants to see it on the Internet," Ayre says.

A Measure of Success

Just before the 2004 NCAA basketball tournament tipped off, the Bodog Group of Companies processed its 150-millionth wagering transaction. One year later, Bodog processed its 360-millionth wagering transaction.

Bodog is now the global leader in safe and secure online wagering, processing around US $6 billion per year in wagers, and recently valued at more than US $1 billion.

"Our success is credited in large part to our unmatched sports betting, casino and poker offerings. Our top-of-the-line wagering technology, coupled with our knowledgeable customer service and quick payouts assures us a satisfied and loyal customer base," Ayre says.

A sportsbook (sometimes abbreviated as book) or a race and sports book is a place where a gambler can wager on various sports competitions, including golf, football, basketball, baseball, hockey, soccer, horse racing and boxing. The method of betting varies with the sport and the type of game. The more prominent the event, the more wagering options that are made available.

Winning bets are paid when the event finishes, or if not finished, when played long enough to becomes official; otherwise all bets are returned. This policy can cause some confusion since there can be a difference between what the sportsbook considers official and what the sports league consider official. Customers should carefully read the sportsbook rules before placing their bets.

The betting volume at sportsbooks varies throughout the year. Bettors have more interest in certain types of sports and increase the money wagered when those sports are in season. Likewise the interest in sports varies by country since the level of interest in the various sports is not constant the world over. Some major sporting events that don't follow a specific schedule, like boxing, can create peaks of activity for the sportsbooks.

Odds

In the mid 1930s, Leo Hirschfield started a company in Minneapolis, Minnesota called Athletic Publications, Inc., that published and distributed odds to bookies across the country by telephone and telegraph. He had a team of handicappers analyzing the matchups who also studied newspapers across the country. The company was a major provider of odds and prices until it finally disbanded, under fear of prosecution from the Federal Wire Act of 1961.

Today most sportsbooks get their opening prices from other sportsbooks as well as private companies like Las Vegas Sports Consultants. They adjust prices based on the bets coming in, news, injury, and weather information, and the price movement by other sportsbooks.

Nevada sportsbooks

Today there are roughly 150 licensed sportsbooks in the United States, all located in Nevada casinos. Now that many casinos share the same parent company, they offer the exact same wagering choices and odds, which is a disadvantage to the astute gambler who in the past could do more shopping for better prices.

In the 1950s the first Nevada sportsbooks, called turf clubs, opened. They were independent from the casinos, and had an informal agreement with the hotels that they would stay out of the casino business as long as the hotels stayed out of the sportsbook business. The sportsbooks had to pay a 10% tax so they charged a high vigorish to gamblers, but they still brought in a lot of business.

In 1974 the tax was lowered to 2%, (and in 1983 lowered to 0.25%), and in 1975 Lefty Rosenthal, who ran the Stardust Casino, convinced legislators to allow them in the casinos, and soon nearly all of the casinos added them. The turf clubs were no longer able to compete and eventually all closed.

In Nevada casino sportsbooks you will find:

Betting Windows

Numerous big screen televisions

Places to sit and watch

Interactive betting stations

Odds boards, usually computerized

Internet sportsbooks

While internet sportsbooks lack face-to-face transactions, they can handle more customers than land based sportsbooks and operate more cost effectively. They pass lower costs on to customers in the form of reduced vigorish (cheaper prices) or bonus incentives. They can also offer similar products, such as casino games, bingo, and poker to their existing clients.

While Internet sportsbooks take bets online, normally they are licensed in some jurisdiction. Taxation and regulation vary greatly by country.

Internet sportsbooks range from fraudulent operations with no intention of paying their customers to multi-billion dollar publicly traded companies. Internet sportsbooks range in focus, as some primarily cater to American sports, while others focus on European soccer. Some sportsbooks handle large wagers while others have low wagering limits. Some offer many exotic proposition wagers, where others have limited choices. Payment methods are not universally accepted at all sportsbooks.

Costa Rica is home to a large number of offshore sportsbooks, as it caters to many of the needs of the industry with an open regulatory environment and a large, capable workforce. A number of sportsbooks are also located in Jamaica, Gibraltar, Antigua, Curaçao, Australia, and many other countries around the world.

The United States Justice Department claims that wagering at offshore sportsbooks is a violation of the 1961 Federal Wire Act. Jeffrey Trauman of Harwood, North Dakota, was the first player ever to be prosecuted for online sports betting in the United States. The former car salesman, who quit his job to become a professional gambler, was cited under a North Dakota state law.