Pennsylvania and New Jersey pushing to lift ban on sports gambling

The states want the ban on sports gambling lifted so they can get a piece of the revenues generated during NFL season.

US.- Some states like Pennsylvania and New Jersey want Congress to lift a ban on sports gambling, in time to participate in the NFL season. Back in 1992, the Congress put a federal ban on sports gambling outside Nevada and three other states. The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act was enacted to protect the integrity of the game.

The American Gaming Association estimates 98 percent of the US$90 billion bet on the NFL this season will be placed through illegal online websites or bookmakers. According to the association’s estimations, roughly US$150 billion was bet illegally on sports over the last year. The estimates do not include money spent on legal daily fantasy sports contests like FanDuel and DraftKings.

“Right now you have a huge illegal market. No jobs. No tax revenue,” said Sara Rayme from the American Gaming Association. “Nevada’s done a great job regulating legalised sports betting and I think other states want to do the same thing and be able to offer patrons and consumers a safe and reliable way to bet on sports.”

A federal court recently denied the state of New Jersey the right to legalise sports betting for the third time. This issue is likely to end up in the Supreme Court.