Gambling sportsbooks lose big with Packers, Steelers upsets

Arthur Weinstein

Gambling sportsbooks lose big with Packers, Steelers upsets image

Sunday was a thrilling day in Pittsburgh and Green Bay, as fans celebrated their team's upset win in the NFL playoffs.

But it was Black Sunday in Las Vegas, as sportsbooks suffered what one gambling exec called "colossal" losses. Sportsbooks lost money on both games, as the 5.5-point underdog Packers and 2-point underdog Steelers both won.

MGM race and sports executive Jay Rood told ESPN.com his company's loss Sunday is "just colossal." 

MORE: Picking the rest of the playoffs

Wynn sportsbook director John Avello told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that the Packers game was a big money loser.

"We had a ton of Packer money lines and a ton of parlays on the over," Avello said. "It was not a good weekend overall.”

Westgate SuperBook assistant manager Ed Salmons told ESPN the weekend's results, "Can't be worse. (They're) awful."

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William Hill, which operates more than 100 sportsbooks in Nevada, said it suffered the worst day in the company's five-year history in Nevada. 

To make matters even worse, sportsbooks lost what would have been expected to be a record betting matchup if the Cowboys and Patriots had met in the Super Bowl.

Bookmakers are off to a rocky start in the new year. Clemson's upset of Alabama in the College Football Championship game costs sportsbooks in Nevada millions.

Arthur Weinstein