{"id":1690,"date":"2017-02-16T23:18:48","date_gmt":"2017-02-17T04:18:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/jsel\/?p=1690"},"modified":"2023-07-25T11:56:23","modified_gmt":"2023-07-25T15:56:23","slug":"nationwide-sports-gambling-bet-on-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/jsel\/2017\/02\/nationwide-sports-gambling-bet-on-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Nationwide Sports Gambling? Bet On It."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Screen<\/a><\/p>\n

The\u00a0Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) of 1992<\/a>, also known as the Bradley Act, expressly prohibits sports betting nationwide with four exceptions: Oregon, Delaware, Montana, and, most notably<\/em>, Nevada. Nevertheless, online gambling for real money<\/a> remains an enormous industry, with the American Gaming Association<\/a> estimating that \u201cas much as $90 billion would be wagered on the NFL\u2026 season\u201d alone, including \u201cas much as $4.7 billion\u201d on the Super Bowl, with 97% of it done illegally<\/a>. Betting on sports has long been a contentious issue in the U.S. but it may soon become a moot point if New Jersey gets its way.<\/p>\n

In 2011, New Jersey voters approved the legalization of sports betting and a law was passed allowing sports wagering at racetracks and casinos beginning in 2012. The four major sports leagues as well as the NCAA sued to block the law<\/a>, arguing sports betting would inhibit the integrity of sports and lead to game fixing amongst players and coaches. The federal courts ultimately struck down the law as a violation of the Bradley Act.<\/p>\n

Not to be discouraged, three years later then-New Jersey Governor Chris Christie attempted to legalize sports betting again, this time by prohibiting sports gambling everywhere except at casinos and racetracks. However, the four major sports leagues, the NCAA, and the U.S. Department of Justice once again successfully argued that the laws violated the Bradley Act.<\/p>\n

In 2016, lawyers representing New Jersey argued the Bradley Act violated the U.S. Constitution, and this time other states are taking notice. As reported by Law360<\/a>, Mississippi, West Virginia, Louisiana, Wisconsin, and Arizona have joined New Jersey in its efforts to legalize sports betting and filed amici briefs in support of the Garden State’s\u00a0position.<\/p>\n

The case is now knocking on the door of the Supreme Court but it may be a while before the issue is ever discussed before the Justices. According to Law360<\/a>, while many commentators assumed SCOTUS would quickly and quietly deny certiorari, leaving the Third Circuit\u2019s dismissal of the state\u2019s challenge to stand, the Court recently invited the Trump Administration to weigh in before making a decision. The StarTribune<\/a> reported that the Court has put off deciding whether to hear New Jersey\u2019s challenge to PASPA until the Solicitor General gives\u00a0an opinion on the matter. \u00a0Unfortunately for those anxious\u00a0to see if the case will proceed\u00a0any further,\u00a0President Trump\u2019s initial pick for Solicitor General, Chuck Cooper, recently withdrew<\/a> from consideration, leaving the critical position unfilled.<\/p>\n

In the interim, commentators \u2013 and those in the betting industry \u2013 eagerly await the Trump Administration\u2019s views on the subject. President Trump, the first U.S. President to ever own casinos, publicly supported the legalization of sports betting in the 1990s, a time when he owned casinos in New Jersey\u2019s Atlantic City. \u00a0Notably however, he\u00a0never addressed the subject during his presidential campaign and many elected\u00a0GOP officials\u00a0oppose sports betting on moral grounds. \u00a0Even if he privately supports legalizing sports betting, Trump has been tiptoeing around the issue and stated in an interview<\/a>, \u201c[s]o we wouldn\u2019t do it lightly, I can tell you. It will be studied very carefully. But I would want to have a lot of input from a lot of different people.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Trump maintains a publicly neutral stance and the Supreme Court awaits a response from the new Solicitor General, there is mounting support outside of New Jersey supporting lifting the ban on sports betting nationwide. New York state legislators recently considered a bill that would amend the state constitution to allow sports betting, thus potentially\u00a0setting up another showdown in the courts. Additionally, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has publicly advocated for a federally regulated system of legal sports betting, an alternative to New Jersey\u2019s proposed system of state-by-state regulation. Lastly, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, at the Yahoo Finance All Markets Summit<\/a>, said, \u201c[w]e are reexamining our stance on gambling. It\u2019s a conversation that\u2019s ongoing with the owners.\u201d Whether the Supreme Court will strike down the Bradley Act and allow nationwide sports gambling remains to be seen but Manfred\u2019s comments may signal a change on the sports gambling horizon.<\/p>\n

Kendall Howell and Jacob Reinig are Sports\u00a0<\/i>Highlight Contributors for the Harvard Journal of Sports and Entertainment Law and current first year students at Harvard Law School (Class of 2019).<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) of 1992, also known as the Bradley Act, expressly prohibits sports betting nationwide with four exceptions: Oregon, Delaware, Montana, and, most notably, Nevada. Nevertheless, online gambling for real money remains an enormous industry, with the American Gaming Association estimating that \u201cas much as $90 billion would be wagered 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