A MAJOR GAMBLE
During the 2017 World Series, a Las Vegas bettor won $14 Million by going six-for-six in his “let it ride” World Series wagers. That is, he chose the winning team in each of the first six games, then rolled his winnings into the next game’s bet. Rather than risk it all on the Dodgers or Astros in Game 7, the anonymous bettor walked away with his cash in hand.
What happened then could only happen in Vegas. On May 14, 2018, the United States Supreme Court found the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), the federal law prohibiting states from authorizing sports betting, to be unconstitutional, returning to the states the power to authorize and regulate sports betting. The expectation was that states would rush to introduce legislation to legalize sports betting to take advantage of the revenue stream it would create. However, legislation has come as more of a trickle than a waterfall.
Still, Major League Baseball is expecting the legalization of sports betting to engage a new generation of fans and forever change the way we watch the game.
For MLB, legalized sports gambling is a double-edged sword pitting an increase in fan
