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Once upon a time, Jai Alai was as popular in the United States as horse and greyhound racing, allowing the average fan to walk into a casino, place a bet on a match, and watch it in real time.
A sport played primarily in Spain, France, and other Latin American countries, jaiarai was introduced to the United States at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis and spread to several cities in Florida as far as Connecticut and Rhode Island. did. West to Las Vegas.
Jai Alai has been mentioned in pop culture in movies like Black Mass, TV shows like The Simpsons, and video games like Grand Theft Auto Vice City, but the sport is in Magic City 1 limited to one front. Miami Casino, also known as “Jai Alai’s Yankee Stadium”.
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But reports of sports deaths seem premature.
Magic City Jai Alai has emerged as a destination for top flight Jai Alai athletes from the USA, Spain, Philippines, France and Mexico. Head-to-head and doubles seasons are currently underway, but the league plans to bring Battle his court back for a second season. The four teams, Cesta Cyclones, Chula Chargers, Ribote Renegades and Wall Warriors, will compete in a nine-week season starting September 23, playing singles and doubles matches and culminating on November 18. .
To the uninitiated, Jaialai may sound like a new professional sports league on the block, similar to ultimate or cornhole.
Scott Savin, Chief Operating Officer of Magic City Casino, describes the sport perfectly.
“It’s like racquetball on steroids in the sense that it’s three courts with concrete front and back walls,” Sabin told Fox News Digital.
In the 1v1 format, players face each other 1v1 or 2v2. A player or team must score 6 points in 2 out of 3 sets. Unlike tennis, there is no deuce or advantage, and ball speeds can reach 150 miles per hour.
There is no doubt that high athletic ability is required.
Miami Casino works to save beloved Jai Alai from extinction
“I’ll use the analogy we sometimes use when a baseball player has to catch and throw with his gloved hand. Say that guy can’t catch with his left hand and move and throw with his right hand.” Imagine, he has to throw, throwing the baseball back to base or home plate with a gloved hand,” Sabin explained.
“It takes tremendous athleticism. Players are very highly skilled because the game has to be played right-handed. If there are lefties, they have to learn to catch and throw with their right hand.”
To appeal to a wider audience, Magic City Jai-Alai partnered with Bet Rivers. Sports fans in several states, including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Virginia, Illinois, and Iowa, as well as some fans in Mexico and Canada, were able to bet on the game through the app. The league also recently announced a streaming deal with ESPN3.
The league is also growing on social media, with over 130,000 followers on TikTok in the last six months.
Magic City Jai-Alai adds another twist that sets it apart from the major North American professional sports leagues. Average Joe can own a team. Sponsoring a team for one season costs him $100,000. Some team owners include Chris Cote of “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugott” podcast and South Florida radio personality K Marie.
“Owners who are basically writing checks out of their own bank accounts are playing to win prize money if their team wins a championship,” Sabin said, adding that the $50,000 donation He added that the department will also go to the owner’s charity.
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“One of the families who are coming back and buying season 2 has designated $50,000 to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital if they win this year, even though they write their own checks,” Sabin said. “They don’t even put their money in their pockets and try to get their investment back. They donate 100% to charity. That’s great and one of the things we really try to do.” is to build a community. With Jaiarai.”
The second season of Magic City Jai-Alai’s Battle Combat kicks off as the NFL and college football take center stage on TV, radio, and podcasts. MLB is also gearing up for the playoffs, and the NBA and NHL regular seasons are about to begin.
So why should the average sports fan attend a jai alai match?
“I think there are two reasons,” Sabin said. “I look at LIV Golf and obviously we follow these things closely. It’s amazing. , the two of us are sports fans… the possibility of becoming a sports owner we think is very cool.
“More importantly, the athleticism involved in playing Jai Alai is probably better than any other game we can think of. All[the players]wear are helmets, no padding, they’re not like hockey players or hockey goalies or football players. Literally seconds to react, catch and do a return throw.If it’s off the wall, how to angle it.For me, when people watch this sport in person or on TV, they see the athlete’s greatness. I think they will come to appreciate the quality of their work.
Lindsey Sabin, the league’s director of communications and Scott’s daughter, agreed with the concept of incredible athleticism.
“Jai Alai is a very exciting sport to watch. As a fan of the sport, as a fan of ground level sports, I have followed the careers of all these athletes and watched them get better and better, and my favorite athletes “It’s been fun to really be a part of this evolution of the sport from the beginning,” she told Fox News Digital. “No debate. Really exciting to watch. It’s a great sport.”
Scott Savin added that players are essentially competing for their love of the game.
“They are not paid like basketball players or football players or baseball players. is a little over $100,000,” he said. Every player in the locker room appreciates the ability to become a professional athlete.
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“I think they all understand that 10,000 people came to see Jai Alai in Florida and Connecticut in the 80s was part of an effort to save the sport that was so common. Players and players alike. There is a tremendous effort by all of us, behind the scenes, to preserve what we all believe is worth preserving, to make it economically viable and to scale. , to go to more teams, more cities, more countries and bring back Jaiarai.How was the 80’s?”