Modern sports documentaries are increasingly personal. They often closely follow athletes and their off-field struggles and stories, just as much as the on-field heroics. These themes of risk and financial stakes often overlap with betting culture anyway, and now that legal sports betting is a huge business across the US the stories can be told in a different light.
Betting Culture is Now Mainstream
Before 2018 sports betting was only fully legal in one state. Now Americans wager $150+ billion on sports every year, across 39 state regulated markets. Sports betting odds are broadcast during major events, and advertising can be seen all over American media, from TV to billboards to social platforms.
For example, this list of current sign-up offers tailored for US bettors is a popular resource that shows exactly how in depth the market goes. And how much information players want before making a choice, from promotions to general odds and payment options.
Sports Documentaries are Also Huge Deals
Sports docs have existed for years, but the modern streaming services’ appetite for the newest versions of them really kicked off with Drive to Survive in 2019. This Formula 1 documentary series for Netflix was so successful it actually boosted the sport considerably over the following years.
Drive to Survive often focused on the financial and media side of the game, and the competitive desire behind success, over purely on field results.
Other big series in similar veins of recent years have included The Last Dance about Michael Jordan’s 1990s heyday with the Chicago Bulls. The series Quarterback, which follows a different NFL QB across an entire season, has also been a big success.
Historical Docs Can Approach Betting from a Different Angle
Because sports betting is now more mainstream, big stars of the past who might not have been so open about their betting are now more candid. The Last Dance featured a whole hour-long episode about Michael Jordan’s high stakes gambling on golf and other sports – although he maintains he never bet on the NBA.
Other documentaries now take a relook at forgotten sports gambling stories such as those of Vegas bookie Jimmy the Greek, NBA betting scandal referee Tim Donaghy or the gambling exploits and eventual fraud scandals of Brett Favre.
While TV and Hollywood films about bettors often glamourize it to some extent, these documentaries examine criminal betting activities of the past with a retrospective modern understanding of the regulated industry.
Streaming Audiences are Becoming More Familiar with Betting
This has obviously been reflected in the wider media. Before, betting movies were usually set in Las Vegas. Now the action goes coast to coast. Series like Bookie, recently cancelled after two seasons, and movies like Adam Sandler’s Uncut Gems featured sports betting as a key plot point from the former’s Los Angeles suburbs to the latter’s high stakes New York jewelry store. But documentaries are also now less afraid to tackle the subject.
Whether its documentaries or fictional tales, recent betting-centred stories have pulled in tens of millions of viewers, and viewing hours worth billions in ad revenue or subscriber fees for platforms.
Michael Jordan, Phil Mickelson, Other Stars Open Up About Gambling
It’s not just in the movies either. The Last Dance reignited public discussion around high stakes gambling in the elite world of top sports stars, especially given big stars working with now mainstream national brands like FanDuel and DraftKings.
Renowned sports bettor Billy Walters’ 2023 book Gambler: Secrets from a Life of Risk had a salacious section detailing Walters’ betting exploits with top golfer Phil Mickelson. The section alleged Mickelson bet $1 billion over the course of 10 years during the peak of his golf career.
Nevertheless, Netflix golf content and LIV Golf coverage continue to emphasise the betting and gambling narratives of golf further into mainstream media.
Critics Say Sports Docs are Now Too Controlled
On the other hand, some critics say that betting is becoming too involved in sports media and documentaries. Or that sports docs are now merely promo for leagues or franchises, and sometimes even gambling companies.
The original in this new wave of high stakes meta-focused sports docs Drive to Survive was criticised by some top drivers like Max Verstappen for exaggerating narratives for storyline purposes.
Media Reflects the Interests of the Day
The truth is though, sports documentaries will always reflect the biggest cultural conversations around sports. As succeeding in sports becomes increasingly more about money and a route to financial freedom in life, and the games themselves become more commercialised and betting oriented for fans, documentaries will tend towards reflecting that.
Sports docs of the 90s focused on celebrity and dynastic achievements. In the 2010s personal struggles and mental health narratives dominated. Now in the 2020s, sports documentaries often look at commercial pressures, career risks, financial incentives or goals and athletes’ personal brands and identities. Whatever you think of the result, this makes media not only a reflection of, but one of the forces actively bringing betting and sports ever closer commercially and culturally.
