About David Strow
David Strow, Vice President of Corporate Communications at Boyd Gaming, has discussed the company's perspective on sports betting and community engagement. In a 2019 interview, Strow said that Boyd Gaming views sports betting primarily as a way to attract new customers to its properties, rather than focusing solely on sportsbook revenue. He stated that new customers who place bets may also spend money on table games, restaurants, or shows. Strow also addressed concerns about match-fixing, saying the company monitors for unusual line movement and reports suspicious activity to regulators. He argued that legalized wagering provides a regulated environment with the same interest as sports leagues in ensuring fair games, and he stated that athletes already face considerable pressure to perform, regardless of betting activity.
In a 2018 speech at an Asian Culture Alliance event, Strow highlighted the diversity of the Las Vegas community and expressed gratitude for the support of Asian and Pacific Islander communities, saying Boyd Gaming "probably would not be here as a company" without their patronage. He described the company's 43-year history in the region and its commitment to celebrating the various cultures that call the community home.
Source: AI-verified profile updated from David Strow's recent appearances.
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Transcript (8 segments)
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Interviewer0:00
And that's why I spoke to David Strow from Boyd Gaming. I asked him how concerned he was that revenue predictions for sports betting in some casinos across the United States had fallen short.
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David Strow0:10
I think you need to look more broadly than simply the revenue that's brought in by the sportsbooks themselves. I mean that is important, it is a business, you're trying to make money in your sportsbooks. But from our perspective as a company, where we really see the potential of this business is an opportunity to grow the customer base and to draw new people into our doors. What we're excited about is bringing in a customer into the property that we haven't necessarily seen before. They'll come in and they'll place a few bets in the sportsbook, but once they're in the property, they're going to spend money elsewhere in the property. They may gamble at one of the table games, they may eat at one of the restaurants, they may see a show, but the point is we brought new customers into the building that then spin throughout the business.
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Interviewer0:56
There's been some reluctance historically because of concerns about match-fixing. That's not really something that you can control. How so, to what extent can you stop that if at all?
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David Strow1:09
We're constantly on the lookout for activity in the lines that may cause suspicion, and we report that activity to regulators as soon as we see it.
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Interviewer1:18
Can you give some examples of what that might be typically?
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David Strow1:22
Yes, it would essentially involve unusual line movement in a game that would indicate some kind of unusual activity that can then be reported to gaming regulators for further examination.
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Interviewer1:37
Recently, the Southeastern Conference commissioner of college sports, Greg Sankey, said that he considered the mental health of athletes an important issue to be considered when it comes to legalized betting on college sports. He was referring there to the pressure on college athletes if they're under pressure to perform when they know that there are significant wagers being bet on, say, a college football game on points scored, yards, and so on. Again, how much of a responsibility do casinos bear in trying to reduce the stress on these athletes when they know that they're playing in games where vast amounts of money might be changing hands on the outcome?
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David Strow2:14
Well again, I would point back to what I said earlier. I think money was already changing hands on these games. The only difference being now is that these wagers are now being conducted, to a growing extent, through a regulated industry that has the same interest in mind as these leagues do, which is ensuring that the games are fair and aboveboard. I would say that the athletes already have a pretty considerable amount of pressure on them already because they are trying to do what every athlete in America wants to do, which is win games and perform to their best level. And I really think that's where their focus is on game day, not worrying about wagering activity that we may have had.
