The NFL created an entirely new position to the front office of the league. The League announced David Highhill as the first Vice President, General Manager of Sports Betting.
Highhill, a longtime NFL employee of ten years, was previously a member of the league’s corporate strategy group. There he led the league’s go-to-market sports betting initiatives.
What will the vice president and general manager of sports betting in the NFL do? He will lead efforts to protect the sport’s integrity from harm related to gambling. He’s also in charge of advancing the league’s brand and reputation, and according to the NFL, grow the value of the NFL’s data and intellectual property and drive fan engagement globally.
“It’s a growing market, it’s grown a lot in the last three or four seasons,” Highhill said to ESPN. “What’s ahead is the exciting part of the opportunity.”
Highhill begins the job at a very critical juncture in the league’s history with sports betting. Last year, sportsbooks advertised during NFL games for the first time. The NFL and member franchises have also partnered with various sports betting operators. And since the United States Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, the federal statute that had restricted regulated sports betting to primarily Nevada, nearly three dozen states have made the activity legal.
