Payment speed and brand reputation remain crucial for bettors’ selection of online sportsbooks for Super Bowl LX, with 27% expecting to wager more than usual

In the countdown to this Sunday’s Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, California, 51% of fans who’ll follow the football game in U.S. states and Canadian provinces with regulated sports-betting plan to bet online, according to research issued today by leading payments platform Paysafe. The company’s All the Ways Players Pay: Super Bowl report also indicates strong interest in legal betting from fans in this year’s host state, if California were to regulate sports-betting, as well as in Texas and Canada’s Alberta.

Appetite to legally wager in California, Texas, and Alberta – with the Canadian province expected to launch its jurisdiction before year-end – rivals the regulated market, with 52% of fans keen to wager on future Super Bowls. Across these currently unregulated jurisdictions and regulated sports-betting markets alike, fans consider payments crucial for online sports betting.

Surveying fans intending to bet in the regulated markets of Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Canada’s Ontario, the report reveals that 59% of them plan to place bets on game-day and 27% expect to wager more than usual. Their top criteria when choosing an online sportsbook are brand trust (prioritized by 43%) and streamlined payouts (37%). Cashing out a Super Bowl bet seamlessly is considered more important than every other non-payment factor, including good odds (30%), UX (22%), promos (21%), and sports events (14%).

Other payment factors are also instrumental in how fans in regulated markets choose sportsbooks, especially rapid deposits (prioritized by 25%) and range of payment methods (24%).

With bettors prioritizing their go-to payment methods’ availability, the battle for Super Bowl customers will likely be won in part by sportsbooks with diverse cashiers.

Across the regulated market, players’ preference for debit cards (43%) is today rivalled by digital wallets (42%). And while states like Massachusetts ban credit cards for wagering, they remain a preference for 33% overall, rising as high as 51% in New York and 47% in Ontario, the top choice in the province.

With established local payment methods (LPMs) like Venmo in the U.S. and Interac e-Transfer in Canada, it’s no surprise that 20% of bettors expect to see their favorite LPM at the cashier. And with 17% of players preferring to wager with pay-by-bank solutions and 10% favoring eCash, sportsbooks with these options will likely gain a competitive edge.

With over a quarter of bettors expecting to wager more than normal, the game offers an important short-term revenue opportunity, but the real value for operators is retaining customers for the long-haul – and here payments are also key. If the payment experience goes awry for the game, 84% of bettors would switch brands.

While California, Texas and Alberta are yet to launch regulated sports-betting markets, Super Bowl fans there are already aware of payments’ importance. If wagering were legal, fans would prioritize payment factors – fast payouts (29%) and rapid deposits (26%) – above everything but brand reputation (36%) when selecting a sportsbook.

Zak Cutler, President of Global Gaming at Paysafe, commented: “Super Bowl LX is expected to generate a record $1.71bn in legal wagers from the U.S. market alone, with an unprecedented betting volume also likely in Canada’s Ontario. The game represents a massive growth opportunity for North American online sportsbooks, and our research indicates that operators that are laser-focused on their cashiers and streamlining the payment experience will give themselves an edge in a highly competitive market.”

As the global sports season enters one of its peaks, Boomerang Partners is preparing a move designed to attract the full attention of affiliate teams. The company has released a teaser video featuring players of its Official Regional Partner, AC Milan. Thus, it hints at the upcoming launch of TIME TO WIN – an exclusive activation for affiliates.

Not a standard campaign

While full details remain undisclosed, the first glimpse of TIME TO WIN has already set the tone. In the teaser video, AC Milan stars Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Alexis Saelemaekers, Christian Pulisic, Adrien Rabiot, and Rafael Leão stop short of revealing anything beyond two signals: TIME TO WIN and Save the date. One thing is already clear: this is not a standard campaign or a one-off activation. Based on our insights, it will be a project built at the intersection of elite sport, affiliate expertise, and a deep understanding of peak interest in major sports events, where speed of execution, precise timing, and strategic readiness define results. Designed with these factors in mind, TIME TO WIN reflects Boomerang Partners’ long-term approach to supporting affiliate partners during the most competitive phases of the sports calendar.

A partnership with one of football’s most iconic clubs

The connection with AC Milan is no coincidence. As Boomerang Partners’ Official Regional Partner, the Club is an integral part of the TIME TO WIN concept, lending its world-class sporting prestige and global reach. This collaboration allows affiliate teams to engage with one of the most recognized football brands in the world, combining the excitement of top-level football with marketing opportunities designed for peak performance.

Through this partnership, Boomerang Partners and AC Milan are preparing a series of initiatives throughout the season, including exclusive experiences, high-impact campaigns, and the launch of the AC Milan Hub – a unique portal providing centralized access to all the activities related to the Boomerang and AC Milan partnership.

Preparation is key

While we don’t yet know exactly what Boomerang Partners will launch on February 12th, we believe the company’s Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026 will assist partners in this regard. This expert guide enables affiliate teams to prepare ahead of the hottest moments of the sports season and make more informed decisions when it matters most.

A peak period for affiliates

The timing of this activation is no coincidence. February and March mark one of the peak periods of the sports season, with major events such as the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, the UEFA Champions League knockout rounds, men’s basketball World Cup Qualifiers, and top-tier tennis tournaments like the Indian Wells Masters and the Miami Open. For affiliate teams, these weeks require careful planning, timely campaign setup, and fast execution. This is exactly the time when participation in TIME TO WIN offers a strategic advantage.

What affiliates can expect

Participation in TIME TO WIN offers affiliate teams a chance to engage with one of the most anticipated initiatives of the 2026 sports season. While full details remain under wraps, the scale and ambition of the activation are already clear: it will be a high-impact, exclusive opportunity that affiliates won’t want to miss.

So what’s coming next? The answer will be revealed on February 12, when full details of the TIME TO WIN activation go live on the Boomerang Partners website. Stay tuned.

About Boomerang

Boomerang Partners is a rapidly growing global marketing agency offering a wide range of services. Boomerang Partners is an Official Regional Partner of AC Milan. In 2024, it launched the inaugural Golden Boomerang Awards – a global tournament for affiliate teams. More than 400 affiliate teams participated in the second season of the tournament in 2025. Partners of the Agency launched six new products in 2024-2025, contributing to a nearly 1.5-fold increase in product users.

The agency’s client portfolio contains 10+ brands offering affiliate and entertainment services across 40+ markets in compliance with local regulations. These products provide personalized bonuses and 24/7 multilingual support.