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Why is it illegal to bet on Sports (except in Vegas) in the U.S.?
FanOf390
Posts: 288
in Sports Talk
Just seems kinda weird that we can:
* Bet on horse races
* Play the lottery
* Play slot machines
* Buy numerous kinds of "Instant Scratch Off" tickets
* and there are many other similar "games of chance"
... and yet we can't legally bet on a sporting event. It would be fun to wager during the NFL playoffs.
* Bet on horse races
* Play the lottery
* Play slot machines
* Buy numerous kinds of "Instant Scratch Off" tickets
* and there are many other similar "games of chance"
... and yet we can't legally bet on a sporting event. It would be fun to wager during the NFL playoffs.
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Not that it couldn't happen with Las Vegas betting of course but by having it in one place maybe lowers the chances a bit.
Of course there is all kinds of illegal betting anyway.
<< <i>I think it is because of the "human" element in sports betting and the possible influence peddling of payoffs to throw a game etc.
Not that it couldn't happen with Las Vegas betting of course but by having it in one place maybe lowers the chances a bit.
Of course there is all kinds of illegal betting anyway. >>
THE HUMAN ELEMENT? That HUMAN ELEMENT is there EVERY DAY at the Racetrack. VERY easy to fix a horse race if you have the jockey in your pocket!
Doug
Liquidating my collection for the 3rd and final time. Time for others to enjoy what I have enjoyed over the last several decades. Money could be put to better use.
<< <i>Just seems kinda weird that we can:
* Bet on horse races
* Play the lottery
* Play slot machines
* Buy numerous kinds of "Instant Scratch Off" tickets
* and there are many other similar "games of chance"
... and yet we can't legally bet on a sporting event. It would be fun to wager during the NFL playoffs. >>
In all the above that are "legal ", the government gets a cut. They simply make other forms of betting illegal, to stifle competition.
Fredric Bastiat , in his book " The Law " stated that the definition of legal plunder is as follow
-- See if the law takes from some persons what belongs to them and gives it to other persons who it whom it does not belong . See if the law benefits one citizen at the expense of another by doing what the citizen cannot do without committing a crime.---
It is legal for the government to run all these and get the benefits but illegal for anyone else to do the same thing.-----BAD LAW
Its all about restricting the competition.
Steve
I never knew it was legal in Oregon.
Steve
<< <i>Not exactly the same thing, horse racing is little league stuff. >>
I'm not looking to get into a pissing match, but LITTLE LEAGUE STUFF? Best figures I could quickly find shows that:
In 1999 there was $16 BILLION bet at racetracks in the USA.
In 2006 there was $2 1/2 BILLION bet on Sports in Las Vegas Casinos. I realize that illegal gambling takes in about $350 BILLION per year for both sports (mostly) and horses. That being said, $16,000,000,000.00 can hardly be LITTLE LEAGUE STUFF.
Doug
Liquidating my collection for the 3rd and final time. Time for others to enjoy what I have enjoyed over the last several decades. Money could be put to better use.
corruption
<< <i>Because the governments want a piece and if they can't get it they make it illegal.
Steve >>
I like ya, WP, but I think it's much more complex than that. I suspect the illegality of certain forms of gambling has less to do with government not being able to get in on the action as it does with the power of established gaming interests. A host of lobbies (e.g. professional sports leagues, the casino industry, horse/dog racing, morality police, etc.) compete to shape public policy in this area, with winners and losers ultimately emerging. Unfortunately, among the losers are ordinary citizens, the majority of whom - I'd be willing to bet - would probably support the regulation and taxation of most forms of gambling.
Further legalization of sports betting? That just ain't gonna happen - I don't care what some news forecasters may say - it ain't gonna happen.
<< <i>Would be a lot simpler to just legalize gambling, pot, etc... and just tax it like cigs and booze. Better to tax that than my income!
AGREE, even sports betting can be legalized and taxed accordingly....there's a lot of sport books out there who wouldn't want this to happen but the betting goes on now anyways...
<< <i>Sports betting is illegal in the USA except for two states: Nevada; and Oregon, where consumers bet on sports through a state-run lottery. But everybody seems to be doing it: celebrities, Wall Streeters, college kids, housewives.
I never knew it was legal in Oregon.
Steve >>
I was thinking there is one other state it was legal. The states it is legal in had sport gambling before a congressional ban was placed so they were grandfathered in.
Raw: Tony Gonzalez (low #'d cards, and especially 1/1's) and Steve Young.
<< <i>I think there is some kind of weird sports betting in Delaware also...not sure but seem to recall reading about it somewhere... >>
There are some sort of state sponsored sports lottery type things in 2 or 3 states - but the only "hard-core" legal bookies in the US are in Nevada.
Link for Delaware betting
Not the same as Vegas, but should be fun.
Placing a wager on sports is totally legal at the federal level in the US and is not governed by the Wire Act. The act of accepting wagers is what is covered by the wire act, an important distinction.
Let me quote the ruling that has stood since Nov 25, 1981 and has NEVER been challenged (USA vs Robert Baborian 528 F.Supp 324 paragraph 5):
Congress intended the "business of gambling" to mean bookmaking, i.e. the taking and laying off of bets, and not mere betting. The provocative question is whether this is still the proper definition when the bettor wagers substantial sums and displays the sophistication of an expert in his knowledge of odds making. This court concludes that the statute simple does not covers such a situation. This court finds that Congress never intended to include a social bettor within the prohibition of the statute and that Congress did not contemplate prohibiting the activities of mere bettors, even where, as with Mr Baborian, they bet large sums of money with a great deal of sophistication.
The truth of the matter is that the DOJ does interpret the law the way I stated it, and that is evidenced by the fact that there has not been a single prosecution at the Federal level since the case I cited (USA vs Baborian 1981). Not one single bettor has been brought up on federal charges since 1981 unless there was tax evasion, money laundering, or RICO thrown at them. The Wire Act simply applies ONLY to those in the business of gambling, and as defined by the judicial system that means someone who TAKES bets. The following are some articles on the subject - keep in mind when reading them that when they say sportsbetting is illegal under the wire act - the key definition is that of someone "in the business of gambling" which has been defined to exclude the person placing bets.
link to rest of article
And yes, law enforcement isn't about to arrest people making private wagers amongst themselves - but to "prove" the illegality of it is easy...I've never heard or known of a gambler legally collecting a gambling debt from another gambler - No judge would rule in favor of a plaintiff on that and the court clerk would likely throw it out anyway.
Also it is not possible for say Bodog to win a judgement for a gambling debt from anyone in the US - they might say they are going to sue to "scare" a gambler into paying a debt through various means, but that debt is not enforceable in court - I have never heard or known of any foreign gambling website successfully pursuing a gambling debt in a US courtroom.
However, gambling debts occurring at casinos in Nevada, from sports bets or otherwise, as well as gambling debts at other brick & mortar casinos in the US, are legal debts, and are enforceable in court.
If you include the people traveling for the tourney games, the money they spend in the city, the concessions, the ticket sales, etc. - it still won't come close to the money sports betting was bringing in.
i guess they used the same logic when they denied a new casino in exchange for a full baseball stadium privately paid for and given as a gift to the state to lure an MLB team.
We haven't had the brightest bulbs in office....
Authorized wholesale dealer for BCW, if you need any supplies let me know and I will get you a quote
he picked "the winner" for 30 games in a row (or something like that), but never gambled with his own money (or anyone elses)
It is only gambling if you stand to lose something
Authorized wholesale dealer for BCW, if you need any supplies let me know and I will get you a quote