David Purdum is a sports gambling reporter for ESPN (full disclosure, betting companies sponsor and advertise on the network). He has been covering gambling since before the Supreme Court threw open the door to legalized sports wagering in 2018. ROTT: Since the ruling, there have been a few incidents where players or coaches have been accused of being part of a sports betting ring. How do you think this has changed the relationship between the NFL and betting?
Across the United States, 34 states and D.C. have now made it legal to place sports bets in person or online. Each of these states has established rigorous licensing regimes to ensure that sports wagers are placed fairly. But that doesn’t mean that bettors should be able to make any bet they want on their favorite team or player. Bettors should familiarize themselves with what’s known as official betting, which is based on information from the governing body of a sport.
France is one of the world’s top sports betting markets, with 2021 revenue totaling $4.6 billion. But, while the nation’s passionate punters are allowed to gamble on most sports, they’re prohibited from placing bets on collegiate games and events.
Colorado is the latest state to allow sports betting, with the first official sportsbook opening in July of 2021. It’s legal to bet on both professional and collegiate teams, but all player prop bets in collegiate games are prohibited. In November of 2022, California voters rejected two initiatives that would have expanded sports betting to the state, both of which broke record spending in their ad campaigns.