For the third installment of a ‘Day Spent With’ we traveled to Las Vegas to learn what goes into a day of content creation inside of a sports betting network. The fine folks at VSiN welcomed BSM’s Derek Futterman to observe shows both on-site at their regular location inside of Circa Resort & Casino, and on-site at the DraftKings set at media row. If you’ve never been to Circa before, you have no idea what you’re missing. It’s literally heaven on earth for a sports fan. The studio setup for VSiN right next to the Circa sportsbook makes it easy to be excited coming into work each day. The background also makes the on-camera visuals look incredible.
Derek Futterman’s day began at 3:30am with Follow The Money, included time spent with Gill Alexander of A Numbers Game, and then shifted to the Mandalay Bay Convention Center to connect with The Lombardi Line. He also had access to VSiN’s program director Jon Goulet and Circa Resort & Casino owner Derek Stevens.
Building content around the world of sports betting requires different skill and knowledge from a normal sports talk show. The on-air team at VSiN know the space as well as anyone, and what you’ll learn in this piece is how easy they make it despite having to navigate through various situations. My thanks to Derek Stevens and the VSiN team for providing great access and insight.
Next week, we turn our attention to Omaha Productions. Derek Futterman spent a day inside the world of Kevin Clark’s ‘This is Football.’ In future weeks we’ll highlight a day in the life of a program director, market manager, social media manager, and media buyer. We’ve also left one slot open to see which of a few possibilities makes the most sense as we move deeper into the series. If you or your brand wish to be involved, email JBarrett@sportsradiopd.com.
– Jason Barrett
Walking through the Circa Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, there are slot machines, card tables and other staples that present a bright, vibrant appearance. Although the city itself never genuinely rests, the primary floors of the hotel are largely empty at 3:15am outside of a few people wandering the area and continuing to gamble. Conversely, the Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN) studio is filled with people arriving to work on the early morning show, Follow the Money. The program is syndicated to various radio stations, regional sports networks and FAST channels around the United States, starting early on west coast time in order to satisfy the east coast morning appetite.
Because of the early arrival time, a preponderance of the show preparation is completed during the preceding day. In the time before the show begins, producer Luke DiVasta is inputting advertising reads into a document for the hosts to review to ensure they are ready by the time the show starts. Additionally, they review the rundown to check that the topics remain pertinent and are able to make changes during the show if necessary.
With 37 states legalizing sports betting in varying capacities after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, there exists considerable interest in the calculus and theory behind the practice. VSiN began operating in 2017 when it was co-founded by Brian and Todd Musburger along with documentary film producer Dave Berg. The network immediately garnered industry attention by adding legendary sports broadcaster Brent Musburger as the host of a three-hour afternoon drive program.
The network currently produces 21 hours a day of live programming on most weekdays and utilizes two studios within casinos in Las Vegas. The Circa-based studio first opened in 2020 and has bolstered the thematic setting of its programming lineup. In fact, its programming occasionally includes guest appearances by Derek Stevens, chief executive officer of Circa Resort & Casino, where he discusses sports betting and its growth.
“It just makes sense because VSiN’s obviously the sports betting network, but it matches up with Circa and our brands,” Stevens said of the complex, which also houses Stadium Swim. “It all just kind of brings things together. We focus on sports more than any other hotel-casino-resort, so I think the placement of [the] VSiN television studio inside of Circa makes a lot of sense for both VSiN and for us.”
The studio utilizes an automated system to make sure it stays on time with its segments and breaks executed by master control. Segments of the program begin with a concise stinger to ease viewers into the show, which is hosted by sports media veterans Mitch Moss and Pauly Howard. With the Super Bowl emanating from Las Vegas for the first time, Moss and Howard discussed the evolution of the relationship between the city and National Football League.
“Already the biggest week of the entire year gets multiplied infinitely because it’s right here in our own backyard,” Moss said. “This is something that I’d never thought that we’d see happen, so it’s huge.”
Moss and Howard both arrive at the studio approximately 30 minutes before the program begins and are immediately ready to take the air. Over time, everyone on the show has adjusted to the irregular schedule, with some staggering their respite to be awake during key moments of the day.
For example, Howard takes a nap after the conclusion of the show before starting to review information that will be used the next morning. He wakes up daily at 1:30am and immediately checks what he missed before compiling information for his ‘Win Some/Lose Some’ segment that has become a hit with viewers. The show reviews the best and worst bets from the previous day, along with showcasing amusing videos discovered on social media.
“A lot of people throw too many numbers at the viewer and so many different trends as well,” Howard said. “I think it’s, ‘Keep it to a minimum;’ two to three things maybe. I think the staff does a great job with that too, but I think some people can be too trend-happy as well and convoluted stuff.”
The program is a genuine multiplatform experience since there are a variety of ways to consume the content. Moss and Howard try to blend their backgrounds in radio with the visual element that equips graphics that outline lines and spreads without every nuanced detail necessarily warranting discussion. Critical in the operation is contextualizing the essence of the metrics and providing analysis that informs bettors and appeals to casual viewers alike.
On this Monday edition of Follow the Money, the show doesn’t feature guests during the first of its three hours. Securing interviews during the early hours can be a challenge, but the show is usually able to achieve its goal and include a wide array of insider voices. The remaining two hours of the program included four guests, including Jason Appelbaum and Mike Somich appearing live in the studio.
Moss is usually the host managing the ins and outs of each segment with his producing background. For each segment, he positions Howard to effectively deliver his analysis and continue the conversation. The hosts see the clock counting down from 12 minutes at all times, engrossed in conversation but remaining cognizant of the importance to hit the outro without delay. They have known each other for more than two decades and promptly cultivated rapport working together on the weekday morning program.
“They’re at that point almost like a married couple where they know what the other one’s going to say and where they want to go with every conversation,” Goulet said. “They are hard-core gamblers and have been for a long time, [and] they are really entrenched deeply in sports betting.”
Because of the brands multiplatform focus, production staff are focused on video and audio in the adjacent control room. Behind the glass, a plethora of equipment is used to load graphics, switch cameras and balance audio levels. Viewers are then able to see the customizable Daktronics LED video wall and live odds, further accentuating the technologically advanced studio.
“Anybody could set up a show inside of a studio,” Stevens said. “When you put it in the middle of some action, it becomes a television studio where you can actually have legit programming without the roar of the crowd ruining a shot or a show. I think it’s pretty special.”
The three-hour show concludes with a sentiment of briskness, something the hosts regard as a sign of an effective program. Aside from discussion surrounding the Super Bowl, the hosts also cover the NBA and preview the forthcoming action. When the show ends, they record promos for upcoming episodes before departing for the day and resuming their dialogue digitally.
“I think we’re unique [in] that we love to watch games and we want to know every specific angle about [the] NBA; NHL; whatever it is,” Howard said. “We love to watch games and not just read box scores on the air. We have great recall on that when it’s used from week to week and game to game.”
Most of the odds promoted by VSiN come from DraftKings, which purchased the sports network in March 2021. According to an August 2023 study from Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, the company is responsible for the largest overall market share in sports betting and other online casino games, garnering 31% of overall gross gaming revenue. Although specific figures from each sportsbook were not released, the Nevada Gaming Control Board revealed that sportsbooks in the state took $185.6 million in wagers on Super Bowl LVIII, its highest total ever recorded for the game.
“People want to debate about, ‘Who’s better? Who’s going to win games?,’ and betting is clearly a part of that,” Goulet said. “In different markets and different areas, it’s going to have more of an impact than others, but I always think there’s going to be room for sports betting talk and sports talk.”
Gill Alexander hosts A Numbers Game from the network’s other studio facility at The D Casino & Hotel, which is a short walk from Circa and near historic Fremont Street. Alexander has been on VSiN from its inception in 2017 and witnessed its growth firsthand. The job requires persistence and hard work, and he is dedicated to the craft to help listeners profit and promote responsible gambling.
“You can be the smartest person in the world and you can try to explain something to somebody, but if it’s not particularly engaging, people lose their attention span on it,” Alexander said. “You have to really be creative. I try to keep that in mind at all times, and I think that comes across to the listener.”
Alexander has had nine producers in seven years with VSiN, turnover he attributes to their skill level and how they continue to advance their careers. The current producer of his show, Kelley Bydlon, is someone he cannot envision doing the broadcast without. Bydlon is skilled both on the air and behind the scenes. While the content flow of the current season is made more facile because of football and the Super Bowl, they work through the summer months where there is a scarcity of professional sports outside of baseball off which to bet.
“My goal every day is to say something different than anybody else says, not just to say it; not for the purposes of saying something different, but saying something different and intelligent and insightful,” Alexander explained. “To the extent that I’m able to do that, then I’ve done my job.”
Some of the programming from VSiN airs on DraftKings Network and originated during Super Bowl Week from its setup at Media Row from the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. That was a welcome occurrence for Michael Lombardi and Stormy Buonantony of The Lombardi Line. The afternoon program generally comes from remote locations. At Media Row, Stormy and Mike seamlessly integrated into the setting and led their show by recollecting how the NFL ultimately arrived at Las Vegas as a Super Bowl host city.
“We’ve been able to develop a chemistry amongst ourselves, but it’s better when we’re in person,” Lombardi said. “She’s really, really talented – she’s very talented in the sense that she can listen to your answer and then ask a really good follow-up question, which is important – and then she has opinions that I need to bring out in her because she’s so mart and she’s into all the things that happen.”
Lombardi is a former general manager and three-time Super Bowl champion NFL executive who worked in the league for three decades with the New England Patriots, Oakland Raiders, San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns. While he broadcasts on a sports betting network, Lombardi does not have a background in the space but contributes his esoteric acumen and accrued expertise as part of the larger conversation.
Contrarily, Buonantony learned sports through the avenue of betting but was not permitted to be associated with betting in her previous roles. She renders it surreal that the NFL had the Super Bowl in Las Vegas, along with the fact that the metropolis has two sports teams of its own and potentially more on the way. Buonantony expounded on this viewpoint during the telecast before transitioning into conjecture on parity within the NFL.
After a scheduled commercial break, the program descibed NFL storylines regarding teams outside of the Super Bowl, refraining from mentioning numbers or lines. Akin to Moss on Follow the Money, Buonantony is often the host anchoring segments thanks to her hosting and reporting background.
“We try to make it a collaborative effort and I really appreciate somebody like Michael including me in that process,” Buonantony said. “We’ll ask him, ‘Hey, what do you want to talk about?,’ because I want to do my best to set him up for success and know what the important topics are for him to hit. There’s so many times where he says right back to me, ‘Whatever you want to talk about – let’s get into what’s interesting to you.’”
Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians joined the show on this day as a guest by phone. The interview ended early after he gave short answers. The program had pre-written questions in its rundown and a list of his accomplishments and accolades as reminders for the hosts.
This marked the second time in as many interviews that the show needed to adapt since the pre-scheduled appearance by ESPN analyst Herm Edwards was delayed. Edwards appeared on the program later on, allowing the show to make up for the altered time. Presenting the show from NFL Media Row during Super Bowl week requires flexibility because of the numerous media appearances made by guests throughout the week.
“You have to figure out what will play best to the audience and what you can do after you had a guest and how you do that, so we’re used to it,” Lombardi said. “I think ultimately one thing you know for sure is whatever the script says, you’ve got to work around it.”
The show then transitioned into a segment called, “Step Into My Office,” which presented Lombardi with questions about NFL head coaches and scenarios surrounding their teams. Rather than displaying betting lines about job security or team performance, Lombardi is given time to offer his perspectives and grant viewers an inside edge.
“I prepare for a show just like I would prepare during a regular season working in football,” Lombardi said. “Study the game, study the teams and then be ready to analyze the teams based on studying them. My job really hasn’t changed. I don’t bet, so I’m not in the betting world. I give out betting advice, but I’m a football person who studies football, and that’s really how I’ve approached it.”
Once that segment concluded, the hosts were prepared to interview Mike Golic Sr. and Mike Golic Jr., both of whom host a show together on DraftKings Network called GoJo and Golic. A last-minute change substituted Golic Jr. for Jessica Smetana, another DraftKings Network host and contributor to The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, requiring real-time adaptation.
With 40 seconds to go until the show returned on the air, Golic Sr. was the only one to take the stage, leading to on-site staff quickly removing one of the two chairs that had been placed behind the desk. Everyone on site embraced the chaos and made the best of the situation.
“It definitely can be a grind especially during college football season overlap on all the things we’re doing, but I can’t imagine doing anything else,” Buonantony said. “I feel so fortunate that [with] my hobby and something that I’ve always loved that I get a paycheck to talk about it. That’s something that I hope I never take for granted.”
VSiN continues to utilize its two studios at Circa and The D, the former which also has a production area complete with video editing bays, podcasting studios and conference rooms. Even though there can be logistical challenges being situated inside of a casino-resort, the network recognizes the inherent benefits to the spaces.
With the three-level sportsbook in the background and odds adorning the walls, there is an aesthetic appeal to the network that, in turn, also enhances its visual ethos. On Super Bowl Sunday, fans needed a ticket to secure a seat to watch the game on the big screen while VSiN stood ready to broadcast postgame coverage at the conclusion of the event.
“The community really embraced the Super Bowl, and again it’s not just a game; it’s years of work and then it’s a week worth of events and things like that,” Stevens said. “It was pretty awesome to just be involved with some of the events.”
“There is no better spot to be at than a sportsbook that is that large; that has that much energy [and] attracts that many people,” Goulet added. “If you could draft, ‘Where would we want to do shows from?,’ that would be my first pick, and we happen to have a studio already built there.”
As VSiN continues producing stellar sports betting content and trying to maximize its reach and relevance in the space, everyone involved possesses an earnest belief in the product. The network genuinely tries to appeal to all facets of its audience, balancing the exposition of parlays, spreads and wagers with traditional sports talk and debate.
Information and opinions transmitted on the shows are not guaranteed to result in effective outcomes since sports at their core contain unexpected fluctuations. Nonetheless, the staff tries to make every show distinctive and worthwhile to its consumers by taking them beyond the numbers and broadening the overall sports betting experience.
“I just hope that it continues to grow alongside betting growing in sort of the mainstream media offerings,” Alexander expressed. “I think as that becomes more accepted by an American sports public, VSiN can only do one thing but soar.”
Derek Futterman is a contributing editor and sports media reporter for Barrett Media. Additionally, he has worked in a broad array of roles in multimedia production – including on live game broadcasts and audiovisual platforms – and in digital content development and management. He previously interned for Paramount within Showtime Networks, wrote for the Long Island Herald and served as lead sports producer at NY2C. To get in touch, find him on X @derekfutterman.
