The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday abolished the ban on sports betting that was in effect in 46 of the 50 U.S. states.
The Supreme Court in Washington on Monday abolished a rule banning sports betting in 46 of the 50 U.S. states, paving the way for a market estimated at tens of billions of dollars. The high court ruled in favour of New Jersey, a state that has been fighting for years for the right to hold sports betting and whose economically stricken casinos are concentrated in Atlantic City.
A text that protected sports matches. The sages of the highest U.S. court found that the 1992 law in force was unconstitutional: it banned betting on professional or university sports, except in four states where they already existed (Nevada, Delaware, Montana, Oregon). Congress passed the legislation, saying that betting would threaten the integrity of sports matches.
Long-term fight. The bill was championed by Senator Bill Bradley, a former basketball star, in the name of youth protection. Chris Christie, the former Republican governor of New Jersey, had begun a long-running battle against the bill, suffering systematic setbacks in court. Until Monday. At the time, Donald Trump, faced with the financial difficulties of his gambling establishments in Atlantic City, had also campaigned against this law, considering that sports betting could offer him a lifeline.
The agreement between popular sports media publisher Barstool Sports and a casino operator is the latest sign of the seismic upheaval underway in the sports betting industry since the Supreme Court allowed them to expand their legalization in the United States two years ago.
U.S. casino operators, fantasy apps, and European and Australian betting brands have entered a race for U.S. customers after the U.S. Supreme Court in 2018 paved the way for sports betting in states other than Nevada. Twenty states and the District of Columbia have legalized them. Some limit the ability to bet at casinos, while others allow online betting, including on mobile phones.