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Gamblers rejoice! On Monday, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of individual states legalizing sports betting, effectively overturning the federal ban on sports gambling. The court ruled 6-3 to overturn the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), a 1992 law that essentially limited sports betting to one state for the last 25 years (Nevada).
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, New Jersey could start taking bets in a few weeks, with a couple other states following in the fall. Since most states’ legislatures are in recess or at the end of session, it could take a year or more before the majority of states take bets.
Mark Cuban, the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, is doing backflips over the deregulation of a $100 billion industry because he benefits immensely.
“I think everybody who owns top-four professional sports team just basically saw the value of their team double at least,” Cuban told CNBC, referring to team owners in the NBA, the NHL, MLB and the NFL. “It can finally become fun to go to a baseball game again.”
“It’s easy to see how you’ll have fun at the stadium, at the arena or while you’re watching —whether its online or traditional platform.”
Professional sports leagues have largely shot down the prospect of legalized sports betting in the past, as they believed it would undermine the integrity of the sports. However, many warmed up to the idea when they started to see dollar signs. The NBA and MLB have pushed the idea of a 1% sports integrity fee, which would be taken out of all sports bets before the government gets to tax bets. But, as AGA senior vice president of public affairs Sara Slane told USA Today, this is a big ask from professional leagues as the average sports book keeps only about 5% of the money wagered and a 1% fee off the top could make legalized sports betting non-viable.
The professional leagues and the states will eventually find a solution that puts money in both their pockets and Mark Cuban’s Mavericks’ $1.9 billion valuation will skyrocket. The rich get richer, man.
[h/t CNBC]