Ryan Knutson

Alex Haberkern is 29 years old. She tends a bar at a casino in Atlantic City. And despite being surrounded by gambling, or maybe because of it, she doesn't consider herself a big gambler.

There is one thing she really loves betting on, though. Football games, using apps like FanDuel and DraftKings. And one Sunday last December, Alex made a particularly wild bet.

There is one thing she really loves betting on, though. Football games, using apps like FanDuel and DraftKings. And one Sunday last December, Alex made a particularly wild bet.

There is one thing she really loves betting on, though. Football games, using apps like FanDuel and DraftKings. And one Sunday last December, Alex made a particularly wild bet.

Alex started stringing together a complicated sequence of bets. She bet that Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings would get 80 receiving yards, that James Cook of the Buffalo Bills would score a touchdown. In the Steelers-Bengals game, she bet that both Jamar Chase and Najee Harris would find the end zone.

Alex started stringing together a complicated sequence of bets. She bet that Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings would get 80 receiving yards, that James Cook of the Buffalo Bills would score a touchdown. In the Steelers-Bengals game, she bet that both Jamar Chase and Najee Harris would find the end zone.

Alex started stringing together a complicated sequence of bets. She bet that Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings would get 80 receiving yards, that James Cook of the Buffalo Bills would score a touchdown. In the Steelers-Bengals game, she bet that both Jamar Chase and Najee Harris would find the end zone.

Alex wasn't just betting that these things would happen individually. She was making a bet called a parlay. For Alex to get a payout, all 14 of those things needed to happen. And the odds of all of those things happening were long. Very, very long. Like 66-yard field goal long. But if the parlay worked, the payout would be massive.

Alex wasn't just betting that these things would happen individually. She was making a bet called a parlay. For Alex to get a payout, all 14 of those things needed to happen. And the odds of all of those things happening were long. Very, very long. Like 66-yard field goal long. But if the parlay worked, the payout would be massive.

Alex wasn't just betting that these things would happen individually. She was making a bet called a parlay. For Alex to get a payout, all 14 of those things needed to happen. And the odds of all of those things happening were long. Very, very long. Like 66-yard field goal long. But if the parlay worked, the payout would be massive.

That dream of getting lucky has propelled parlays to the very center of the sports betting world. And these long-shot bets are solving some big business problems for the gambling industry. Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Ryan Knudson. It's Friday, February 7th. Coming up on the show, how parlays became the biggest bet in sports.

That dream of getting lucky has propelled parlays to the very center of the sports betting world. And these long-shot bets are solving some big business problems for the gambling industry. Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Ryan Knudson. It's Friday, February 7th. Coming up on the show, how parlays became the biggest bet in sports.

That dream of getting lucky has propelled parlays to the very center of the sports betting world. And these long-shot bets are solving some big business problems for the gambling industry. Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Ryan Knudson. It's Friday, February 7th. Coming up on the show, how parlays became the biggest bet in sports.

How long have you been covering the gambling industry now?

How long have you been covering the gambling industry now?

How long have you been covering the gambling industry now?

Changed a lot during that time.

Changed a lot during that time.

Changed a lot during that time.

That's our colleague Catherine Sayre. And she says that lately, the sports betting industry has been going through some growing pains. How's business for sports betting apps right now?