Renegades Lead As Florida’s Pro Jai-Alai League Hits Homestretch

With just a few weeks left in Battle Court’s regular season, the shimmering glass court of Magic City Fronton at Magic City Casino in Miami will host some of the most exciting jai-alai action in the state.

Monday kicked off the final two weeks of matches in the third season of Battle Court. The Rebote Renegades defeated the Dejada Devils 5-3 to extend their lead over the rest of the league.

The Renegades sit atop the five-team pro jai-alai league with 66 points. Additionally, they are the only team to have clinched a top-three finish, guaranteeing themselves a playoff spot.

Heading into Tuesday’s action, only five matches remain. The Cesta Cyclones wrap up their regular with three of them. They square off against the Wall Warriors Tuesday evening, the Renegades Friday night and the Lifestyle Miami Chargers on Monday, May 1.

The Warriors face off against the Devils on Tuesday, May 2. Then, the league’s final match features the Devils and Warriors on Friday, May 5.

The DC Court of Appeals is still deciding the immediate fate of Florida sports betting. However, jai-alai is one of the two sports Sunshine State bettors can wager on. Horse racing is also available.

Unfortunately for Florida bettors, Battle Court wagering is off-limits. When the league was created, the rules were altered slightly to create a format more conducive to team play. As a result, regulators won’t allow pari-mutuel facilities to accept bets on the format.

Battle Court standings

The top three teams in the five-team league advance to the playoffs, with the No. 1 seed getting a bye.

The standings don’t go by win-loss record. Instead, the league ranks teams by their cumulative point totals. Every doubles match is worth 1.5 points and every singles match is worth one.

The possible points remaining show how many points each team would earn if they won all their remaining games.

The playoffs can be seen on ESPN3, with the semifinal on May 8 and the Battle Court Season III Finals on May 12 in Miami.

“Weekly, these teams have brought their best, but the season is still in play, and these final weeks will be nail-biters as we watch these pelotaris battle it out for their spot on May 12,” said Scott Savin, Chief Operating Officer of the World Jai-Alai League.

Savin also serves as CEO of Magic City Casino. He was instrumental in securing the league’s partnership with Rush Street Gaming.

Rush Street owns the Rivers casino brand and the BetRivers sports betting app. The partnership allows users of the BetRivers platform to wager on the World Jai-Alai League’s Battle Court.

BetRivers is available in 12 states, Canada and Mexico. But not Florida. When Florida sports betting returns, residents of the Sunshine State will likely be able to bet on Battle Court.

Magic City Jai-Alai becomes WJAL

Before the start of the 2023 season, Battle Court was part of the greater operation known as Magic City Jai-Alai. But before the 2023 season kicked off, Magic City Jai-Alai rebranded to the World Jai-Alai League.

The name change coincided with the move by the Havenick family to sell Magic City Casino to a Native American tribe from Alabama. Despite the sale, Magic City fought to keep the ability to continue to spread jai-alai matches at the current fronton.

Earlier this year, former NFL star and Pro Football Hall of Famer Ray Lewis joined Battle Court’s Board of Directors.

Each team chose a charity to play for at the start of the season. The league champion will have $50,000 donated to the charities of their choice. The charities include Better than Wonderful Foundation, Chapman Partnership, Clean Miami Beach, Kiwanis Club of Little Havana, and the Ron Magill Conservation Endowment.

Battle Court games are played Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays at Magic City Fronton, located at Magic City Casino in Miami. But only Friday’s matches are open to the public. ESPN3 airs select matches.