Over the course of the last decade, American’s wagering on Fantasy Sports has become a societal norm. The Fantasy Sports Industry has helped normalize the idea of Sports Betting. FanDuel and Draft Kings are two extremely prominent examples of Fantasy Sports Apps which already allow people to gamble on sport via Fantasy. Today, sports broadcasts on the TV networks such as ESPN, Fox Sports, and countless online media outlets deliver information to their viewers related to Sports Betting. The Athletic’s writer Ethan Strauss covers point-spreads throughout his specials, “Strauss vs. The House”. He hosts a weekly NBA Gambling column that intends to put his ‘money where his mouth is’ with his week-by-week NBA point-spread predictions. (Strauss).
Sports Betting has been illegal outside of Nevada since 1992 by an act of Congress. The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PAPSA) passed by Congress in 1992 was intended to, “combat the supposed scourge of sports gambling, it effectively banned this vice in just about every state, while giving Nevada (the only one that sanctioned full sports gambling) a perpetual monopoly.” (Gregory 22). The PAPSA law was ruled unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court, rendering their 6-3 decision on May 14th, 2018. The majority opinion was written by Justice Samuel Alito. “A more direct affront to state sovereignty, is not easy to imagine.” (Alito). The majority opinion of the court determined that PASPA was an unconstitutional infringement on states’ rights. The Supreme Court decision will spur “the largest expansion of gambling in our nation’s history,” says Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling. (Gregory 22).
The United States Supreme Court case was: MURPHY, GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY, ET AL. v. NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSN. ET AL. In this case the court was asked,” Does a federal statute that prohibits modification or repeal of state-law prohibitions on private conduct impermissibly commandeer the regulatory power of states in contravention of New York v. United States?” (Oyez, Murphy v. NCAA). The Murphy case stemmed from a previous case: CHRISTIE, GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY. v. NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSN. ET AL. In that case, the court was asked to scrutinize the PAPSA Sports Betting case in regards to the Tenth Amendment, Federalism and the States Supremacy Clause as well as Anti-Commandeering. (Cornell Law, Christie v. NCAA).
According to a San Francisco Chronicle article; with Full-Scale legalization of Sports Betting underway in New Jersey, nearly $600 million dollars have been bet on Sports in the 4 ½ months that Sports Betting has been legalized. The Fantasy Sports Apps FanDuel & Draft Kings each offer NJ residents the ability to bet on sports through their own original Sportsbook Apps. Other states, such as Delaware & Mississippi also currently offer their residents Full-Scale Sports Betting.
The next tier of states in consideration for Full-Scale Sports Betting includes: New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Rhode Island. The interest of these state governments in Sports Betting is mainly due to the lucrative tax revenues and incentives. For instance, “West Virginia will collect 10% of the profits and funnel the first $15 million per year into the state lottery fund, which finances school construction, senior-citizen services and tourism promotion.” The East Coast State governments are fighting one another for the potential tax dollars that residents from each State may represent. A similar scenario to this also related to the gambling that occurred during the 1970s when States such as New Jersey began implementing their own state lotteries to offset the mafia and their illegal Numbers/Sports Betting rackets. “The American Gaming Association estimates that the national illegal sports gambling market grew from $80 billion in 1999 to $150 billion currently.” Much of the illegal gambling occurs on the internet and is mostly conducted off-shore. Legalization brings illegal money back into the American economy through the government’s taxation and regulation of Sports Betting. (Gregory 22).
As you progress west of the Mississippi River, the legalization of Sports Betting becomes a little bit more difficult for States to implement. This is due to the fact that many states, including California, have Tribal Gaming Compacts that give Native American Tribes control of gambling within their state. Western states are proceeding slowly due to the constraints associated with Tribal Gaming Compacts. Depending on each state’s individual framework of their Tribal Gaming Compacts, they may be able to enact Full-Scale Sports Betting.
In The Color of Money, Paul Newman’s character Fast Eddie Felson proclaimed, “Money won is twice as sweet as money earned” (De Fina & Scorsese, 1986, 55:46-58:42). Legalizing Sports Betting has enfranchised another aspect of the American Dream myth. What author Aaron Duncan describes as, “The Myth of The Self-Made Man,” in his work, Reimagining the Self-Made Man: Myth, Risk, and the Pokerization of America. The promise of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as first defined by Thomas Jefferson. The initial American Dream myth, coupled with the idea that with hard work, optimism and cooperation it is possible to become economically successful. The self-made man is is the central figure of the mythic story of the American Dream.
The self-made man of Sports Betting is Billy Walters. Billy Walters was, “born to a poor teenage mother in southern Kentucky and raised primarily by his grandmother until she died when Billy was 12. He started placing bets as a young boy and lost all his savings -- $75 -- betting on the New York Yankees against the Brooklyn Dodgers in the '55 World Series. In the early 1980s, he left two failed marriages and a car salesman gig behind in Kentucky and, after a misdemeanor gambling conviction, headed west with a tiny bank account and a heavy drinking habit,” (Fish, A Life On The Line).
He is currently serving a 5-year prison sentence in Florida and must pay a $10 million dollar fine for insider trading. Mr. Walters’ claim-to-fame was that he had a 30-year winning streak from betting on basketball and football. He owns several houses, car dealerships, and a $20-million dollar private jet. He was charged, but not convicted, on numerous other counts of criminal activities. Mr. Walters is known for placing extremely large wagers on both sides of the action in effort to manipulate the bookmakers odds in his favor.
For instance, during the 1980s he operated the infamous Computer Group which analyzed sports information and syndicated bets for Mr. Walters and his constituents to make a profit. Walters was known to bet on Sports through a network of individuals that he would have place bets on his behalf. This enabled Walters to be able to move money onto both sides of the action, having an enormous advantage against the Casino’s bookmakers. Billy Walters is a Gambler and an American Sports Betting Legend.
Sports Betting legalization will be the largest gaming expansion since the Poker Boom of the early 2000s - 2010s. And with this new expanding industry, there will be plenty of ways to profit. Advertisement and sponsorship deals have already been struck between MGM Resorts and leagues such as the MLB and NBA. It is only a matter of time before there will be a full fledged advertising campaign broadcast on all airways, alongside commercials, online platforms, and all types of media/business endorsements regarding Sports Betting. An entire industry is waiting to take shape. Regulations waiting to be drafted. The current foundations laid by Fantasy Sports providers will help launch completely new platforms that will offer sports fans and the TV audience at home a brand new way to interact with their sporting entertainment.