One Percent of US Sports Betting is Legal and Taxed
As far ago as 1998, US sports gambling totaled $380 billion. And, of that huge volume in sports betting, less than one percent was wagered at legal Nevada sports books, says the head of the American Gaming Association.
Frank Fahrenkopf, the president of the AGA, which represents the US land-based casino industry, said the numbers are derived from testimony by law enforcement officials the last time the NFL opposed an attempt by Delaware to legalize sports betting a decade ago.
Yet NFL representatives say any legalization of sports gambling, or any gambling other than lotteries paying it a commission, threatens the pureness and integrity of its games. The additional clause about lotteries is tacked on as of last week, when NFL teams began selling their brands to state gambling operators.
Meanwhile, over $350 billion in commerce goes untaxed, as the NFL leads sports leagues in refusing regulation of sports betting. The betting continues apace, just the taxes are avoided.
"There's legislation and now a lawsuit in New Jersey to bring back the ability to conduct sports betting," says Fahrenkopf. If Delaware's sports gambling lottery is allowed to take single game bets, success in the state will increase pressure on neighboring states to institute their own sports betting, which means beating a 1992 federal law either in court or Congress.
"We know that the NCAA, the National Football League, National Hockey League, Major League Baseball and others are very unhappy with what has happened in Delaware," Fahrenkopf said.
There will be strong resistence to legal sports gaming. But, in the long run, dollars speak louder than words, and $400 billion shouts quite audibly.
