Drew Brees is continuing to rack up work while in retirement.
Legal sports betting operator PointsBet announced a partnership with the former New Orleans Saints quarterback as its “global brand ambassador.”
The Super Bowl champion and future Hall of Famer will tackle his new position as the company’s newest ambassador in addition to his growing broadcast duties with PointsBet’s sports betting partner NBC Sports.
Brees joins PointsBet as global brand ambassador
Brees and PointsBet USA CEO Johnny Aitkin expressed their mutual admiration for each other. The CEO praised the quarterback’s “tireless work ethic” and his “win-at-all-costs mentality that embodies PointsBet’s DNA.” Brees, in turn, called PointsBet “a leader in the future of sports entertainment built off elite technology.”
In the multiyear deal, Brees will participate in PointsBet marketing and advertising. This includes creating and starring in content, hosting watch parties, doing all he can to help increase brand awareness. This approach has been taken by basketball greats Allen Iverson and Shaquille O’Neal, each of whom has put in work with the sportsbook.
Also as part of the agreement, Brees gains a significant equity stake in the company and receives a cash component.
“Today is a massive day for our company as we welcome Drew Brees into the PointsBet family,” Aitken said in a press release, noting the similarities Brees and PointsBet share.
“We look forward to collaborating for years to come and integrating Drew across our portfolio to complement PointsBet’s market-leading technology infrastructure and strategic approach to the competitive sports betting space.”
PointsBet winning over US one state at a time
Founded in Australia, PointsBet continues expanding into emerging US sports betting markets. The PointsBet sports betting platform currently operates in six states:
- Colorado
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Michigan
- New Jersey
The operator boasts its unique PointsBetting feature that can lead to big wins. PointsBet calls it a “bettor-first” initiative, one of several it puts forth.
In a timing-is-everything kind of move, PointsBet lands one of the most iconic Louisiana athletes in history just as the Pelican State works on launching sports betting. (Although the lack of a regulatory chief continues to delay the industry’s rollout.)
Still, it seemed more than likely that PointsBet would target Louisiana to introduce its sportsbook. With Brees now in tow, now it seems more like a given.
Brees adds PointsBet to NBC Sports role
Brees, the NFL’s career leader in passing yards and completions, joined NBC Sports in March as a studio anaylst for Football Night in America. Now, he joins PointsBet, which already had ties to NBC.
NBC Sports has a 4.9% equity stake in the operator as part of a $500 million partnership deal that the network and the sportsbook sealed in 2020. This established PointsBet as the official and exclusive betting partner of NBC’s sports assets. That includes NBCSN, the Golf Channel and eight regional sports networks.
PointsBet will utilize NBC Sports’ multiplatform and media opportunities, including Spanish language platforms such as Telemundo Deportes. Meanwhile, NBC Sports broadcasting is likely betting that Brees will lead again in sports broadcasting.
Despite the tie shared by Brees, NBC and PointsBet, according to reports and in keeping with practices to date, it’s unlikely that Brees will directly discuss sports betting data on air. Although the demarcation between sports betting and media has gradually becoming less distinct.
