Sports Betting in Delaware Blocked by Court
The US Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled yesterday bthat Delaware cannot begin its sports betting program before the hearing in a lawsuit filed by the NFL and other US sports leagues. The injunction sought by the leagues was granted by the appellate court after a judge had failed to see damage to the leagues if the program were allowed to commence.
The panel of three judges indicated the issue needed to be resolved before Delaware could institute the sports betting facet of its lottery. Although no significant harm may be caused to the sports associations, the panel said it was concerned about redress for consumers should the gambling system be found illegal.
"[If] Delaware knows it was taking my money in an illegal scheme, I want my money back," said Justice Theodore A. McKee, the presiding judge.
The judges agreed that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act does not allow Delaware to expand its sports gambling beyond what had been offered before the state was grandfathered under the law. That means that Delaware can still take parlay bets, but may not offer single-game bets.
The decision comes after wide media coverage ridiculed the NFL point of view, as many critics said the league was being disingenuous in its denial of the multi-billion dollar illegal sports betting business in the US. The day before the NFL told the court of its fears that gambling could harm its game integrity, the English Premier League, the biggest sports association in the world, announced another of its clubs had formed a partnership with a sports betting site to offer gambling on the team website.
