The 7 Best Sports Betting Movies

Sports betting has begun to take a foothold in what is acceptable in our society. It wasn’t that long ago that Hollywood made it their agenda to portray sports bettors and bookies alike as shady characters with a waning moral compass.

There have, without a doubt, been some seedy elements to the world of sports betting, but this is ultimately to put butts in seats. After all, who wants to watch Jake from Centralia, IL place hundreds of bets from his home computer day after day, while he pours over piles of analytics?

Not me and likely not you. Hollywood gets what compels humans to feel, and they exploit our savagery by catering to it. Here are the 7 best sports betting movies to pass a lazy afternoon.

1 – Eight Men Out

Eight Men Out takes us back in time to the 1919 World Series between the Chicago White Sox and the Cincinnati Reds. The infamous “Black Sox” scandal has carried on as one of baseball’s greatest scandals for over 100 years.

Perhaps the only scandals to rival the impact made on baseball were Pete Rose’s own betting troubles (also involving the Cincinnati Reds, although nearly 70 years later) and the steroids scandal of the 2000s that has kept many of the greatest names in the sport out of the Hall of Fame.

The film casts the players who conspired with gamblers to throw the World Series as nothing short of being the victims of a greedy and ruthless owner, Charles Comiskey. This film strays a bit from the reality of the scandal.

Many may be surprised to learn that it was the players who sought out the gamblers to put in the fix and not the other way around.

Eight Men Out refers to the 8 White Sox players that received a lifetime ban from baseball, the most famous of the 8 being “Shoeless Joe” Jackson. Shoeless Joe also receives an onscreen portrayal in the movie Field of Dreams.

The movie itself is an intriguing look at the dark side of both sports and real money gambling. Standout performances from a young John Cusack and Charlie Sheen keep you focused and entertained.

Despite the evil nature of what the players were involved with, I find myself rooting for them in a manner. Every time I see the film, I hope for them to understand the magnitude of their poor choice and turn it around to win the series.

2 – Diggstown

Who better to play a smug slimeball fresh out of prison and looking to score big than James Woods?

Nobody.

This is probably why Michael Ritchie tapped the iconic star for the role of Gabriel Caine. Even the name sounds suspect.

Caine makes a bet with a wealthy businessman that owns most of Diggstown. Diggstown is seemingly mad with boxing fever, and Caine wagers that he can find a boxer to knockout 10 opponents in a 24-hour span.

Enter “Honey” Roy Palmer, played by the delightful Louis Gosset Jr. The Iron Eagle star steps into the ring as a 48-year-old “has been” that many consider being a “never was.”

In typical fashion, Gosset and Woods do an amazingly accurate job showcasing their acting chops as they battle their way through Diggstown. Boasting a 77% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes is pretty good for a flick that came out before most of the audience was born.

Diggstown is more than a movie about sports betting. It’s an examination of the human condition. You’ll go on a roller coaster of emotions for the entire 98 minutes.

3 – Two for the Money

Two for the Money is the movie that sparked my interest in sports betting. The (somewhat) real-life tale of college athlete turned sharp sports bettor Brandon Lang is wildly exaggerated, but even more entertaining.

Pairing Al Pacino and Matthew McConaughey with writer Dan Gilroy was a grand slam. McConaughey portrays Brandon Lang, a former college football player. Lang is laboring away as a telemarketer until he catches the eye of Walter Abrams.

Abrams owns one of the most extensive tout services on the East Coast and ceremoniously takes Lang under his wing as the heir apparent to his luxurious thrown. However, Lang swiftly learns the pressures and pitfalls of operating at such an incredibly high level.

A level previously unimagined, where grown men are crying over losing their homes and intimidating mafia types, is threatening to take his life and the lives of his family.

Two for the Money doesn’t take a hard look at the analytics or operations behind sports betting. What it does deliver is an exciting and glamorous look into what we would all love for it to be while simultaneously going to extremes to depict the unfortunate side of sports betting.

4 – Let It Ride

Based on the novel Good Vibes by Jay Cronley, Let It Ride brings us a familiar tale of the lovable loser. That lovable loser is Jay Trotter, played by the distinguished actor Richard Dreyfuss.

Trotter is a middle-aged man that never realized his full potential and is so stuck in a dead-end job driving a taxi cab(taxi cabs are how people would often get from point A to point B in large cities before Lyft or Uber).

Trotter also loves horse racing, and his wife is none too pleased with the amount of time and money he’s been wasting at the track. She lays down the law and informs Trotter that at the end of his shift, he must come home and focus on their marriage instead of the horses.

Then Trotter gets a hot tip that he just has to lay. He ends up winning and decides to “let it ride.” The movie follows 1 day as Trotter continues to parlay his way to riches.

Dreyfuss plays the part to perfection, and this may not be a movie that will provoke inspiring conversations. However, it’s a feel-good movie that actually has the “good guy” win.

5 – Casino

You can hardly talk about the great gambling movies without Casino coming up in the first 3 sentences. You may not even think of Casino as a sports betting movie, but you’d be wrong.

Casino is after all the true story of Frank “Ace” Rosenthal, one of if not the savviest and profitable oddsmakers of his day.

It was his penchant for setting such favorable lines that had the Chicago crime syndicate put him squarely at the head of Las Vegas’ biggest casino.

Robert De Niro is phenomenal in his role as Sam Rothstein (Frank Rosenthal). In fact, the entire cast plays their parts to perfection. Joe Pesci delivers a painfully good Nicky Santoro, the wildcard mobster with short stature and shorter fuse.

James Woods also makes it back on the list for his performance as Lester Diamond, the scumbag pimp of Ginger McKenna. Ahh yes, Ginger McKenna, the pill-popping wife of Sam Rothstein.

Sharon Stone is so excellent that she was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Actress in a Leading Role. Stone didn’t take home the Oscar, but she did win the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture.

The entire cast is just beautiful, much like everything else about Casino. If you’ve never seen the film, I need you to stop what you’re doing and watch it right now.

Well, after you finish my list of the 7 best sports betting movies.

6 – The Color of Money

The Color of Money takes us back to a time not long ago when the public’s perception of sports bettors were shady ne’er-do-wells with a cigarette dangling from their lips and a drink in their hand.

Paul Newman brings back the apex pool shark “Fast” Eddie Felson after a quarter of a century in this sequel to The Hustler. He is joined by his protege Vincent Lauria.

Tom Cruise is charismatic and believable in his slot as Lauria. The young actor had so much potential. It’s clear to see why he became one of the greats.

The film takes an in-depth look past the money involved in sports betting and examines the egos, pride, and fear involved in the discipline.

The Color of Money received 4 Academy Award nominations. Paul Newman, the Oscar for Best Actor thanks to his incredible performance. Despite 8 previous nominations, this was Newman’s first win.

You’ll have a hard time finding a better movie about sports betting than The Color of Money. I’d bet on it.

7 – The Hustler

The Hustler features Paul Newman as he introduces the role of “Fast” Eddie Felson. Felson is a pool shark traveling across the United States to take on the white whale of Minnesota Fats.

This film stands out among the others on the list and probably any file you care to add it to. The Hustler is simply that good.

Minnesota Fats is brought to life on screen by the legendary Jackie Gleason. Yet, Gleason understands that his role is that of supporting actor and allows Newman to shine.

Gleason plays the antagonist to perfection, and the 2 have incredible dynamics in front of the camera.

Newman received an Academy Award nomination for his brilliant performance. The film received a whopping 9 Oscar nominations, winning 2.

If you’re only going to watch one movie this year, you should make it The Hustler.

Conclusion

Movies do a fantastic job of provoking human emotions. Some of the 7 best sports betting movies will leave you happy, others sad, and the best will probably have you feeling both.

Did your favorite make the list?