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AGA Estimates Fans Wagering Billions On March Madness

Ian Pickus
/
WAMC
The NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16 takes place this week.

The first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament are now in the books. And the American Gaming Association estimates fans across the country will wager billions on March Madness. But not in New York — at least not legally.

The American Gaming Association says about 47 million people across the country will wager $8.5 billion on March Madness. AGA President Bill Miller says that’s more than twice the amount fans wagered on the Super Bowl.

“In fact, 30 million more Americans will bet on March Madness than attended a professional football game last year," Miller notes. 

Also notable in the AGA’s poll is how fans will be betting. Despite a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing states to legalize sports betting, Miller says 2.4 million Americans will illegally bet on March Madness with a bookie, while another 5.2 million turn to illegal offshore websites.

“A large percentage of Americans don’t even know the legal status of sports wagering in their jurisdiction," Miller explains. "So all of us engaged in this effort need to continue to work together to ensure that bettors know how and where to do this legally.”

Sports Betting
Credit wikipedia.org
The New York State Gaming Commission posted rules in March that could allow in-person sports betting at casino lounges as early as this summer.

Since the decision in 2018, seven states (Delaware, New Jersey, Mississippi, West Virginia, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island) have joined Nevada in legalizing sports betting, and online gambling sites and mobile apps have gained popularity. New York, however, is not among them. Speaking with WAMC’s Alan Chartock, Governor Andrew Cuomo said he wasn’t a fan of mobile betting, and didn’t see an economic benefit to legalization. 

“New Jersey has sports betting, it’s on TV all the time – you can’t turn on the darn TV without seeing it. They raised something like $13 million. $13 million is a rounding error in our state," Cuomo said. "So I don’t even think the economic benefit is there.”

That’s not to say the effort isn’t there. The New York State Gaming Commission posted rules last week that could allow in-person sports betting at upstate, on-site casino lounges by the summer, even if the legislature doesn’t pass a comprehensive bill. AGA President Miller says sports betting legalization is the future.

“I think there’s a reason that we’ve gone from one state to eight, and with 20-some states that have different variations of sports betting legislation in those states because they believe 1.) Their constituents want it, and 2.) There is significant revenue for the state to benefit,” 

Miller says legalization could bring a “younger, more diverse” demographic to casinos, and dismissed Governor Cuomo’s economic reasoning. The point, he argues, is to bring illegal bettors into a regulated environment.

“From a fundamental perspective, safe, legal — better than illegal and unsafe," says Miller. "And state revenue versus no state revenue? [State revenue is] Better than no state revenue."

A February Siena poll found New Yorkers split on the matter, with 44 percent supporting and 44 percent opposing. Michelle Hadden, assistant executive director of the New York Council on Problem Gambling, says the group is concerned how legalization may affect those struggling with gambling addiction.  

“We know from research that the more that we see an increase in opportunities and accessibility, that the more likely we are to see subsequent consequences related," Hadden notes. "And we are looking at how are we going to work as a state to mitigate the potential consequences that are gonna come from that expansion.”

March is also Problem Gambling Awareness Month – those seeking information on services provided by the New York Council for Problem Gambling can check out the council’s website.

Jesse King is the host of WAMC's national program on women's issues, "51%," and the station's bureau chief in the Hudson Valley. She has also produced episodes of the WAMC podcast "A New York Minute In History."
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