Super Bowl in a gambler’s paradise: The fact that the NFL is holding its season highlight in Las Vegas symbolizes the NFL’s new proximity to the sports betting market – problems included.
For decades, the National Football League (NFL) specifically avoided gambling. “She had no official partnerships with gambling companies, prevented an NFL team in Las Vegas and would never have the Super Bowl held”, said N. Jeremi Durusports law professor at the American University Washingtonthe sports show. “But that has all changed.”
Next Sunday (February 11, 2024), the gambling metropolis of Las Vegas will host the Super Bowl between the two for the first time Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers. During the TV broadcast, commercials for sports betting will be shown, the NFL has three official sports betting partners and the Washington Commander There is now even a place to accept bets in the stadium.
States have been able to decide for themselves since 2018
The critical distance from gambling has turned into a tight embrace – and that has to do with a decision from 2018. At that time, the US decidedSupreme Courtthat sports betting should no longer be banned nationwide, but that states will be able to decide for themselves in the future whether to legalize sports betting.
I had pushed for it above all else New Jersey in hopes of boosting the local economy. After the ruling, it only took a few weeks for the east coast state to lift the ban on sports betting.
Gambling addiction is also a danger for young people
The consequences can be seen in numbers Council for compulsive gambling in New Jersey. In the three years after 2018 alone, the total number of bets in New Jersey increased by 166 percent. At the same time, the number of calls to the helpline for gambling addicts has doubled within five years. “There are a lot of young people who play,” said Felicia Grondin, the managing director of the Councilsdem Guardian.
Although the minimum age for sports betting is 21, this barrier is apparently easy to circumvent. More and more institutions are sounding the alarm that young people are increasingly being affected. “The United States is heading toward a gambling quagmire, if not a crisis,” said Rick Brenson, Founder of the Algamus treatment facility for gambling addicts in Goodyear, Arizona.
Sports betting legal in more than 30 states
Some states, including Texas and California, have stuck with the ban to date, but more than 30 of the 50 states have now legalized sports betting. A few clicks on that Smartphonethe bet on the next NFL game is already placed.
US professional sports are now an important part of the gambling industry with all its risks. “The NFL and its sports betting partners highlight the dangers of addiction, but many observers are concerned that the NFL and other leagues are not doing enough in this regard,” says sports lawyer Duru.
Gambling: danger and source of money
From a sports perspective, the focus is on another aspect: the danger of match manipulation. The NFL and other leagues have long been against liberalizing sports betting because of the risks to their own credibility. Currently making a quote from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell from 2012. “If gambling is allowed at sporting events, normal occurrences such as missed throws, bad passes, turnovers, penalties and refereeing decisions will inevitably lead to speculation, suspicion and accusations of match-fixing.”
Before the start of the 2023 season, Goodell also said in an NBC interview that the NFL had, after the Supreme Court had cleared the way, “occupy this new space” must.
Ban on traveling away from home
The relationship remains ambivalent. On the one hand, the league and teams benefit from bubbling advertising revenue. During the Corona pandemic with its economic consequences, sports betting would even have an impact on sports “saved in the short term”, said Ted Leonisowner of the Washington Wizards and Capitals.
At the same time, the league is trying to limit the risk of match-fixing. Players must contractually agree that they and their family members will never bet on NFL games. The team members also have a general ban on gambling when traveling away – flights and bus rides included.
Increased penalties for gambling
In Duru’s opinion, this complex set of rules contributed to the fact that more players and coaches have recently been banned for gambling in the NFL compared to other leagues. The number has increased since legalization six years ago, says Duru.
Between 2021 and 2023 alone, the NFL suspended ten players for gambling, seven of whom had bet on NFL games. Lastly, young professionals took care of things Kayshon Boutte (21) from the New England Patriots for headlines. He was arrested in January 2024 for being in his college-Time is said to have placed more than 8,900 illegal bets under a pseudonym, including on his own team.
Mistrust seems to be growing
The case shows how closely the issues of youth protection, gambling addiction and possible match manipulation are connected. “If NFL fans come to the conclusion that the outcome of NFL games is predetermined, it will destroy the business,” says Duru. “So the danger is real.”
Sports commentator Mike Floro stated in NBC Pro Football Talkdistrust among fans has increased significantly. “Legalized gambling gives people another level of believing that someone is manipulating things.”
Rule relief in Las Vegas
The struggle with the once demonized gambling – it is now particularly clear at the Super Bowl. Actually, all team employees are prohibited from going to casinos on away trips. According to AP, the NFL is now making an exception in the gambling epicenter of Las Vegas: the ban only applies to players, but not to other employees in their free time. The lurching course continues.