Point-Counterpoint: Sports Gambling

Sports gambling has found its way to the forefront of sports culture. We see countless Fanduel and DraftKings ads during sporting events, but is this a good or bad thing? Despite the popularity of the practice, a fundamental disagreement has formed between sports fans regarding its use.

Point 

It’s legal to bet on sports in 38 states as well as Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico. Specifically, online sports betting is legal in 30 states, and it provides a huge boost to the consumption of sports. Given the economic and coverage benefits, the United States should work to fully legalize sports gambling. 

Gambling has a major role in the sports industry. The high rollers in the industry spend $400-600 million annually on marketing through every channel, with TV and advertising as the main focus. In 2023, FanDuel spent more than $1 billion in advertising and carried 40% of the betting market in the United States. 

The National Football League has created heavy competition for these gaming companies. Currently, the NFL only has verified five companies that can promote themselves during games. Even with the discourse gambling causes, there’s still a race to grab a spot to advertise during professional football games. 

First and foremost, sports is an entertainment business, and betting makes games and seasons as a whole more intriguing. Betting fits in perfectly with what sports are all about — an escape from the day’s harsh reality. From 2017, when sports betting was legalized, to 2022, viewership of sports overall grew by 20%.

Gambling played and continues to play a critical role in reviving baseball. It’s hard to find meaning in a sport that plays 162 games, but these sports betting companies found a way. They give special promotions for its consumers to make more money or to bet a certain amount and the user will not get penalized for it, and the ability to make a bet like this allows the user to gamble with no penalty of losing money — which usually makes them want to come back for more.    

Gambling has given those who may not enjoy the game another way to consume and enjoy. People who have a financial stake in a game are more likely to watch and keep a close track of games and, in turn, learn more about the sport. Betting drives passion in fans who otherwise may not have cared, which then also impacts merchandise and ticket sales, contributing to another revenue stream for leagues and teams. 

Sports directly benefit from people placing bets and there’s little reason to put a strain on assisting an industry to grow to its full potential. Many use it as a fun way to bond with friends, and with discipline and responsibility it’s very enjoyable. 

But gambling addiction is very serious if not dealt with immediately and correctly. With that in mind, these companies have a plethora of warning signs and education for their users. People should know the dangers, but ultimately it’s not anybody’s job but their own to act responsibly. Sports betting is a for-profit business that gives its participants more chances to make an extra few bucks. It’s a fun way to make boring games more interesting and interesting games feel more important. 

Counterpoint

Everyone knows the best part of watching sports is the self-induced anxiety attack one gets from betting on a box score and niche occurrences.

Cutting the sarcasm, the increased accessibility — in more ways than one — of sports betting has done irreparable damage to the purity of sports and the general health of the public.

If fans turn on any broadcast and listen for an hour, they will almost certainly hear a mention of which team was “favored” or who was the “underdog.” These fans might hear unsolicited opinions of what “Vegas” thinks about the contest, including numbers like “+6.5” or “-200.”

The first problem is that it is not sports. The same way some geezers can’t stand when their baseball broadcast cuts to kids playing cornhole outside the stadium, some fans want to turn a game on and just watch the game. Sports betting has increased so much that unfortunately, broadcasters have almost no choice but to mention information pertinent to it. 

Despite the name, sports betting is a money market outside of sports. For fans who have friends with disposable income, this interaction might hit close to home: “How many three-pointers did Steph Curry hit? S—, only six? I had him hitting seven.” If the better doesn’t even watch the game, they might as well play roulette. 

In fairness, sports betting is a moneymaker. If the industry didn’t make money and didn’t draw more viewership, broadcasters would rarely mention it. The ever-growing size of the industry brings the second problem — conflicts of interest.

Match-fixing is against the law, and any organized league has its own punishments for perpetrators. However, that has not stopped high-profile players from crossing the line. Now that sports betting is more accessible than ever with dozens of free mobile apps, players can easily break the golden rule of sports. 

While the entertainment and fairness of sports are in jeopardy, the most important issue is the public health concerns that sports betting brings. 

Two congressional Democrats, Sen. Richard Blumental and Rep. Paul Tonko, have recently proposed a bill that bans sports betting nationally and would force states to apply for three-year allowances to temporarily legalize the practice.The SAFE Bet Act also proposes to ban commercials advertising sports betting between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. during sporting events.

One of the most sinister sides of sports betting is player-proposition, or “prop bets,” on college athletes, which the SAFE Bet Act also aims to ban. Professional athletes are one thing — they play with million-dollar salaries. But college athletes typically play with far less money in their pockets. Sometimes, they aren’t even playing on scholarship, and in some cases, they aren’t even old enough to buy a scratch-off.

Alabama’s new star first-year wide receiver Ryan Williams is 17 years old. Yet despite not having the ability to legally vote, use Tinder or get a tattoo on his own, random adults across the country get the chance to bet on his receptions or yards. If Williams falls short of strangers’ predictions, those strangers have the motivation to find Williams on social media and send him messages that no one deserves to read.

Sports betting hinders the enjoyment of sports for those who already pay too much for a cable package. It can compromise the integrity that keeps sports sacred and is a major concern for national lawmakers. Betting puts people in misery and debt — let’s not nationalize this vice.