Oh, the age-old question: “what the heck do I watch next on Netflix?” With more than our fair share of original scripted series flooding the streaming marketplace, sometimes you just want to sit down and enjoy some real-life drama. And for us sports fans, we know there is nothing more dramatic than a good story with sports at its core. To spare you the endless scrolling as you search for that next great sports documentary to watch, we’ve curated a list of the five best sports documentaries on Netflix for your viewing pleasure.

Best Netflix Sports Documentaries Honorable Mentions

Sports Gambling Documentary Netflix

Team Foxcatcher

1. In “Action,” the new documentary series from Showtime, multiple participants in the show compare the allure and pull of sports gambling to an addictive substance.Some casual bettors go so far.
2. The world of sports betting has always fascinated Hollywood filmmakers. And why wouldn’t it? These 5 films offer a fictional but informative peek into the lives of all those involved in the world of sports betting: players, coaches, family, friends, and of course, bettors.
3. Showtime just announced its 4-part documentary which depicts the real story of US sports betting scene with 2018 NFL season in focus.
4. Netflix's catalogue of sports films and sports documentaries range from classics to new greats; smart films to gloriously dumb ones. Now including Raging Bull.

And for us sports fans, we know there is nothing more dramatic than a good story with sports at its core. To spare you the endless scrolling as you search for that next great sports documentary to watch, we’ve curated a list of the five best sports documentaries on Netflix for your viewing pleasure.

Sports Betting Documentary Netflix

Pumping Iron

The Armstrong Lie

Sports Gambling Documentary Netflix Review

Meru

The Battered Bastards of Baseball

Quick, everyone jump on the sports gambling bandwagon! The latest media outlet to cover gambling will be Showtime, which announced a four-part documentary called Action on Tuesday. The series will premiere on March 24th at 8 PM, and followed various people in the sports betting industry through the 2018 NFL season, with the narrative ending a week and a half ago on Super Bowl Sunday.

Here’s more, per Showtime, including some of those featured (Brent Musburger, Cousin Sal, and Russell Wilson, to name three).

ACTION chronicles the lives of professional gamblers, bookies and oddsmakers throughout the 2018 NFL season following the Supreme Court decision to lift a ban on sports betting. The series will culminate with the biggest gambling day of the year, Super Bowl Sunday. The character-driven narrative delivers intimate access to a diverse cross-section of authentic and sometimes garrulous subjects within the sports gaming community, documenting the effects of legalization through their prisms.

Sports Gambling Documentary Netflix 2019

[…]

An estimated $400-$500 billion is wagered annually on sports gambling in the United States. The central figures introduced in ACTION range from some of the most respected experts to influencers in the industry, such as reputed professional gambler Bill “Krack” Krackomberger, sports handicapper Kelly Stewart and polarizing sports betting consultant Dave “Vegas Dave” Oancea. ACTION also features Seattle Seahawks quarterback and Super Bowl Champion Russell Wilson, legendary bookmaker Jimmy Vaccaro, sports broadcasting icon Brent Musburger and comedian Cousin Sal.

And here’s a trailer.

Alright, so it really seems like this is less about “sports gambling being legalized,” and more about “people who love to bet on sports,” which is fine, but arguably is aimed at a more niche audience. That seems to be backed up in these quotes from Showtime in the release.

“The world of sports gambling has fascinated Hollywood for decades, but never before has a documentary captured the essence of the industry at such a pivotal period,” said Stephen Espinoza, President, Sports and Event Programming, Showtime Networks Inc. “Through the lens of industry professionals and real-life gamblers within every virtual layer of the business – both legal and illegal – ACTION delivers a one-of-a-kind look as sports gambling enters a brave new world.”

Sports Gambling Documentary Netflix Release

Said director Luke Korem: “The chorus of human stories we present in ACTION will resonate far beyond the world of sports and gambling. This is a sub-culture that reflects to an extreme the risk, reward and uncertainty we find in our everyday lives. I’m thrilled that SHOWTIME is allowing us to capture these stories at such a unique moment in history.”

Sports Gambling Documentary Netflix Series

We’ll see what people think of this series when it premieres next month. I think people who are firmly embedded in the world of sports betting will dig it, those looking to get involved in the industry will be turned off, and the opinions of those somewhere in the middle will see their mileage vary. Whatever the case, I don’t think anyone should go into this series expected a balanced look at sports gambling.