March Madness, which focuses on the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament and the ultimate crowning of a national champion is one of the most watched sporting events of the year.
With wall-to-wall television coverage of the tourney, from Selection Sunday to the Final Four, March Madness has become a massive television event. March Madness has become a major tourist event for host cities, that has moved beyond the sports bettor’s annual pilgrimage to Las Vegas for the first two weekends of the event.
Houston is the host city for the Final Four this year, with the semi-finals and national championship game scheduled to take place at NRG Stadium. Better known as the home of the NFL’s Houston Texans, NRG Stadium will accommodate over 70,000 fans for Final Four contests.
The Final Four is expected to dominate the calendar during the first weekend of April, but it will not be the only sports action available in the city that weekend.
The Houston Astros make their first appearance of the baseball season in the city that weekend, playing a pair of exhibition contests against the Milwaukee Brewers at Minute Maid Park on March 31st and April, before opening the MLB regular season in new York on April 4, with a date against the Yankees.
The Astros emerged as one of the most improved teams in the majors last season, winning 86 games and returning to the postseason for the first time since 2005, knocking off the Yankees in the AL Wild Card Game, before falling to the Kansas City Royals in the ALDS.
Houston’s solid campaign in 2015 has made them a strong 16/1 bet to win the 2016 World Series in MLB futures betting vat sportsbooks available through BettingSports.com, and one of the must-see teams in the majors this season.
Among the other cities hosting earlier rounds of the tournament are major league centers, including Raleigh, Denver, Brooklyn, St. Louis, Oklahoma City, Anaheim, Philadelphia, and Chicago.
With March Madness occupying the primary arenas in each of those cities in the United States, little opportunity exists for visiting sports fans to double their pleasure with an NHL and NBA game during their stay.
While sports fans can follow their favorite pro teams via the blogs and sportsbooks available at BettingSports.com, they can also get in on betting action at casinos located nearby this year’s March Madness venues.
A full riverboat casino experience is available less than an hour from Chicago’s city center at the Grand Victoria Casino, while visitors to Denver can get their slots fix on with a visit to Sasquatch Casino in nearby Black Hawk, Colorado.
Harrah’s Philadelphia offers harness racing and a full casino experience to visitors to the City of Brotherly Love, while visitors to St. Louis for the opening weekend of March Madness can wind down after the games with a visit to the luxurious River City Hotel & Casino.
