In recent years, sports gambling has gained momentum throughout the U.S. Today, approximately 30 states have legalized gambling, with a large majority being in-person betting. Some notable states with legalized sports gambling are New York, Arizona, and Illinois.
Sports gambling began to open in 2018, after the U.S Supreme Court ruled against the Professional and Sports Amateur Athletics Act. Before then, PAPSA had a hold on sports gambling as congress prevented its expansion out of Nevada. For years, PAPSA had a monopoly on sports betting across the country.
Today, the industry is more open, allowing more businesses to profit from sports betting. Though it’s been a slow rollout in many states, states can engage in betting if they choose to. Some states have been quick to embrace legalization, while others haven’t. California, for example, has been very slow to embrace the legalization of it. In November, California natives will have the option to vote on whether or not to legalize mobile gambling.
It’s been a long time coming, but now the choice is in the hands of the people. If sports betting becomes legalized in California, it will generate billions of dollars for many companies. It will also create a lot of tax dollars for the state. At the same time, it may increase gambling addiction around the country. It’s an issue California and other states have been trying to avoid for some time.
Sports betting is big business. Many professional leagues will have no choice but to embrace it at some point. There's still a reluctance to do so because it puts the integrity of some of these professional leagues in question. The NBA has been one of the first of the big four sports leagues to welcome and embrace sports betting. Back in 2018, the NBA attempted to seek 1% of every legal bet placed.
In the same year, the NBA partnered up with MGM. The two companies announced MGM would be the official gaming partner of the NBA. The deal was the beginning of the introduction of sports betting. The integration of sports betting was bound to become a part of professional sports at some point. The NBA wanted to partner up with MGM to create a partnership where integrity could be maintained. The money wasn’t the concern of the deal. The deal was more centered around data sharing between the two companies.
The NBA has been one of the more progressive leagues. They know the importance of embracing change. There's no way of escaping the inevitable integration of sports gambling. The best way to navigate it is by offering transparency. The NBA has done so up to this point other leagues will soon follow suit and embrace sports gambling.