Among the many numbers that attract the interest of seasoned NFL bettors on the Las Vegas Strip, there’s one in particular at Circa Sports'that draws their attention – as well as that of the sports wagering industry overall – as summer nears its conclusion: the overlay.
For the uninitiated, “overlay” is the amount of money of an operator must add to the pot to reach its guaranteed payouts for a contest.
Circa has guarantees totaling $14 million this year for its pick ’em and survivor contests. Those break down as $6 million in guaranteed payouts for the sportsbook’s fifth annual pick ’em contest, the Circa Million V, and $8 million for the Survivor Pro Football Contest, now in its fourth year.
The $14 million is a $2 million increase from 2022, when the $12 million in guaranteed payouts included an overlay of about $1.3 million to ensure its no-rake status. The entire overlay came in the Circa Million IV, which had 4,691 entries at $1,000 apiece. The Las Vegas-based sportsbook kept the pick ’em contest prize at $6 million this year, but upped the survivor pool payout to $8 million after there were 6,133 entrants last year and payouts exceeding the $6 million guaranteed.