Gamblers are not only those who play online craps for real money at various internet gaming outlets like the Wild Jack Casino. Instead, it is a business with many branches, covering everything from Wild Jack slots to lottery tickets, poker rooms, daily fantasy sports (although some would disagree) and betting on sports. Not for US citizens, though – betting on sports is illegal in most states under a law that states that it endangers its integrity. Yet this situation might change sooner than you think – more voices speak for legal sports betting in the US today than ever.
Why can’t we bet on sports in the US
The Bradly Act or PASPA (Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act), signed into law by President George H. W. Bush in 1992, is to blame. The act has effectively outlawed all forms of sports betting in the United States except for fantasy sports, sports lotteries conducted in Oregon, Delaware, and Montana, sports pools in Nevada, jai alai, and pari-mutuel horse and dog races.
Over the years, though, the stance of most states’ legislatures on gambling, in general, has changed. States that were totally anti-gambling approved casino projects to make use of their beneficial effects on their budgets, and some of them – Delaware, Nevada, and New Jersey – have even decided to regulate some (the first two) or all (NJ) forms of online gambling. Attempts to repeal the PASPA were made several times over the 15 years that have passed ever since but to this day none of them were successful.
The latest on legal sports betting in the US
Proponents of sports betting regulation instead of a ban have science by their side. A recent report published by MoffettNathanson Research has shown that the NFL has missed out on more interest – and perhaps more importantly, more revenue – by not embracing sports betting. Legal sports betting, the report shows, would “boost viewership and grow advertising revenue” for NFL’s (and all other major sports leagues) TV partners, which would boost the revenues of the leagues, too.
The NFL, as well as all other major sports leagues, are businesses, with the ultimate goal of making money. Legal sports betting would not only boost their revenues but it would also mean an end to the extensive illegal betting market in the United States, estimated to be worth billions a year. That, and not regulated sports betting, is what truly jeopardizes the sports’ integrity. Former NBA commissioner David Stern supports it, and so might MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. This, combined with the repeated legal efforts to bring back regulated sports betting to the US, might finally do the trick.