Sports betting in the USA has been a good business for years. This is not only in the gambling paradise of Las Vegas, but since legalization in 2018 also in cities like Atlantic City. The hype about sports betting is very convenient for the city because gambling is booming and is now breaking records.
The hype about gambling in sports
A hotel room in the casino town of Atlantic City, New Jersey. The TV is pre-set to the casino commercial channel. Spots from a wide range of online sports betting providers alternate every five minutes. They’ve been legal in the US since 2018 and have been experiencing an onslaught since then that seems to never end.
It was the state of New Jersey that made sports betting possible by suing the Supreme Court. The then governor Chris Christie was looking for new sources of income for the cash-strapped state, sued against a law that banned sports betting and won.
Only those who are in the federal state can also gamble
If you want to gamble through betting sites like Kubet House that have their offers in New Jersey, you have to be in the state. One step across the national border with the smartphone and the account is blocked. So David Rebuck, Superintendent of the Betting Control Board in New Jersey and his team monitor the location of an online betting account in the state down to the meter. A look at the casinos in Atlantic City shows that this business model works. While only a few tourists gather at the classic slot machines, roulette and poker tables, the sports bars mostly located directly at the entrance are well stocked.
Two million people in the US are addicted to gambling
Casinos across New Jersey generated around 4.7 billion US dollars in revenue in 2021. 485 million US dollars flowed into the state coffers. Money out of the players’ pockets. Two million people in the US are addicted to gambling. For 20 million, gambling negatively affects their work or social life. This is according to addiction experts from the National Council on Problem Gambling.
David Rebuck is therefore convinced that the next step must be more controlled by sports betting providers. With the technology behind their online offers, they could monitor exactly who has or is developing a game problem. Rebuck plans to make this one of the requirements for licensing in the near future.