Reel Lives: Unabated’s Thomas Viola On Discord, Syracuse’s ‘Newhouse Mafia,’ Mario Kart Play-By-Play, And Betting MLS Underdogs
Viola stops by to talk media, how he got his start, Musburger, and much more
7 min
Every gambler has a story to tell. And so does every person who chooses to make a living in this unique industry.
In our “Reel Lives” series, Casino Reports shines a spotlight on people working in the gaming business, from executives, to analysts, to media members and communications pros, and all points in between.
The subject in this interview: Thomas Viola, associate director of content at Unabated Sports, an industry-leading sports betting community and builder of tools aimed at making bettors better. Among other things, the Las Vegas-based Viola co-hosts the Unabated Podcast alongside company co-founders “Captain” Jack Andrews, Rufus Peabody, and Peter Jennings.
Casino Reports (CR): For somebody who is not yet on Discord or maybe not yet on the Unabated Discord, cut me a promo for the platform. What can folks find there and what’s the atmosphere and community like?
Thomas Viola (TV): It’s the best place to go for betting advice. And obviously I’m extremely biased here, but I’ve been in other Discords – the ones that are pick sellers. I’ve been in others that are supposed to be just gambling and it’s always devolving into, what are you sweating tonight? Who’s on this bet?
And then I go into the Unabated Discord and as people say, “I think I’ve noticed an edge in the first five inning unders on this sportsbook” and things like that. It’s a great place where it’s actually comprised of bettors who not only are sharing information and talking constructively about real plus-EV things, but it’s a place where you can go and ask questions.
We have a non-toxic community and a group of vets who are in there because they want to be in there, and they want to help other people get better. So when I’m signing people up and getting people introduced to Unabated, one of the first things that I say is go check out the Discord because you can ask questions in there and you’re going to get real answers on how to use the tools and how to get better.
CR: You’ve been involved in podcasts, live-streams, play-by-play, who knows what else. What kind of media do you personally enjoy doing most? What gets your juices flowing?
TV: I love doing the Unabated podcast – I love doing all that with Jack. We’re very casual and laid back, but the podcast is very much the suit and tie. We’re here talking about some quote-unquote “serious” betting stuff.
Beyond that, I have to say my time as a professional Mario Kart commentator was just so much fun, and I still do some local events and eSports. I like being an entertainer and I do really like doing the play-by-play side of things and the eSports outlet is a very nice time for that, but I love doing all of it. I just love being in front of the camera.
CR: This is pretty open-ended: What’s your take on how sweepstakes sportsbooks fit into the whole ecosystem?
TV: I’ve been really interested because of the complete divergence of opinions that I have heard because on one side, you have Captain Jack who is very genuine and he says he believes this is like a PASPA-repeal-level shift in sports betting. And then I know another guy who works for a different platform, and the view there is that things might be difficult legally in the back half of the year.
So I’m just completely in the middle where I’m excited. Personally, I think that it’s going to be a source of innovation and a great way to move us closer to legalized sports betting nationwide.
But the thing that I’m most excited for personally: I want to see some walls get broken down here in Nevada. And I think as we continue on this evolution, we are going to get closer to that point where Nevada gaming finally has to say, OK, you know what, maybe it is time for us to actually change some things and walk into the 21st century of sports betting.
CR: What does your own betting appetite look like? How many accounts are you juggling and what sports or angles do you like to attack?
TV: I’ve got like 8 to 10 accounts right now. I’ve got a couple of things to help me out that are non-Nevada based, but it’s rough. I’m signed up for every Nevada sports book out here.
But when it comes to the odds screen, I have my account that I use to show people how the tools work and it’s got every sportsbook on it, and I’ll see 40 edges on the screen and then I switch to my personal customized to only my Vegas books, and I’ll see five edges on the screen and it hurts my soul. But some of the things that I do love betting … a lot of what I do is just using the Unabated tools. That has made me into a very, very minorly profitable bettor. I am certainly not a big stakes player, but the tools have definitely helped me.
And then when it comes to my own personal betting, I really love MLS. I think that if you are going to be starting out, attacking niche markets is a way to go and MLS is just something that I really enjoy watching. Once you combine that with a knowledge of how proper sports betting is supposed to work – identifying edges, looking for inefficiencies in the market. When you combine that with a sport that you do really enjoy, that is much more niche and fewer people are paying attention to, you get a good combination there for a great starting place.
CR: Have you gotten into a particular groove with the MLS betting? First half unders or something?
TV: I do a lot of work when it comes to identifying live underdogs because in MLS, especially the home/road splits, they’re incredibly divergent.
And as a result, you do get some good prices on underdogs sometimes because they only win a quarter of the time league-wide but there are some teams that are better on the road than others, and there are also some teams that you can just take advantage of fading, especially in-game. I’m a San Jose Earthquakes fan, so I watch a ton of their games and I also know that they’ve given up a league-record amount of leads this season.
So I will sit there each and every game just waiting for them to hopefully go ahead and then I’m just going straight into the in-game menu and taking up some draw, no bets and some other team to win markets on the moneyline, because I feel like some of it still gets priced as if this is a league that doesn’t have these wacky endings that MLS is really prone to.
CR: Let’s talk alma mater: Syracuse, where you majored in broadcast journalism at the SI Newhouse School. Obviously ‘Cuse has a reputation for producing scores of talented media people and journalists, in sports especially. What do you think it is about SU? The program, professors, just the reputation at this point and the people that it attracts, is it some career network?
TV: Yeah, it’s the “Newhouse Mafia.” That’s what we call it. And it’s so built on helping other people succeed and reaching out and extending a hand up behind you to the next class.
I’m not kidding when I say I have walked into a classroom on a random Tuesday and Mike Tirico is chilling there. It was an awesome moment, but that’s the kind of stuff that happens routinely. The big names do come back and they do help people out and it’s even further down the net.
You meet someone who was also in Newhouse at Syracuse and it’s an instant bond. One of my buddies, Adam Rosenberg, he’s well known by a lot of people in the space and we met solely through the connection there, and we’ve been friends ever since. The Newhouse Mafia is a very real thing and they really do cultivate excellence and that’s consistent across graduation classes.
CR: As a media person, talk to me about VSiN, which as of last week is coming back via sale to Brent Musburger and Bill Adee after a three-plus-year ride after DraftKings acquired the network. I know you spent a little bit of time there previously. Do you think VSiN is now kind of poised to reclaim a place it once had, independent of a corporate parent? What do you see next in the evolution?
TV: From my time there, the coolest thing in the world as a 23-year-old kid is sitting down every day and Brent Musburger is coming over to you and saying, ‘All right, Tommy, what are we talking about today?’ and just talking sports with him. That was an absolutely awesome experience.
I’m curious to see how much they’re really going to change because I don’t feel like the vibe when DraftKings took over was that much different. I think the biggest thing, shooting from the hip, if they get back on SiriusXM radio, that’s going to really help them grow and get back to where they were because they were really starting to hit a peak. I was laid off in the middle of the pandemic when they had to slash from a 60 to 70 person operation down to 15 people. If the pandemic hadn’t happened, I really think the growth potential was so much higher for them and I think they could get back there.
CR: What’s the best simple and straightforward piece of broadcasting advice you’ve gotten?
TV: “Just do it” from Sean McDonough. He came back to school and told us a story about the time that he got called up by NBC. They called and asked him, “Hey, can you do boxing?” And he was like, “Yeah, absolutely.” Hung up the phone and said, “I guess I better learn boxing.” And that’s how he got into it.
That’s how I got into this industry, too. I was calling soccer games in Napa [Valley] for 20 bucks a game. And I cold-called every team in the United Soccer League and the Las Vegas team got back to me and said hey, “Do you want to do a sports betting radio show for us?” And I said, “Absolutely.” And then it was, well, I guess I better go and learn about sports betting. And that was the start of this whole journey.
Reel Fast
What’s your typical order at a classic candy/chip vending machine?
Skittles.
When you close your eyes and picture a casino, which one do you see?
South Point.
Do you have any unusual talents or hobbies?
I am the world’s best assembler of IKEA furniture.
What’s a random Summer Olympics event that you’re looking forward to watching?
Surfing.
How many times do you wear a pair of jeans before they need to wash?
I don’t wear jeans! Hate jeans.
What’s the most memorable bet you’ve made in 2024 so far?
Well in 2023 it was definitely the Knights winning the Stanley Cup. For ‘24, I guess it’s the Jets to win the Super Bowl. I gotta do it.
You can follow Tom on X, Instagram, and on LinkedIn, whether or not you’re a member of the Newhouse Mafia.
Previous installments of Reel Lives:
Sporttrade’s Arpita McGrath On AML, Exchange Wagering, And The Luxury Of Power Windows
PokerGO’s Donnie Peters On Covering Poker, Online Expansion, Roulette, And ‘Rounders’
Sharp Alpha Advisors’ Jordan Pascasio On Venture Capital, Innovation, And The Nova Knicks
