‘Too close to call’ is often used when discussing election results.
Few have earned this phrase as thoroughly as Missouri Amendment 2 did before it passed last week.
Perhaps fittingly, proponents and opponents of legalized sports betting in the Show-Me State sweated it into overtime before fewer than 5,000 votes pushed the effort across the finish line and it will be implemented next year, barring an unexpected recount challenge. changing the outcome.
Missourians will place legal sports bets and do so from the comfort of their own couch or even during games via on-site sportsbooks and mobile apps. You no longer have to drive across the river to secure pickaxes. For those diving in, good luck.
Remember, you’ll need it.
There’s a reason why revenue from legalized U.S. sports betting reached nearly $11 billion by 2023, according to the American Gaming Association’s annual report. The bookmakers, even the legal ones, tend to make big profits.
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I’m not a hater of sports betting. I thought the issue belonged in the hands of the voters, and now that the majority – barely – say they want to embrace the trend, so be it. But be aware of the risks, as ongoing evidence suggests they are much greater for sports fans, especially young men.
In sports (and sports betting for that matter), everything comes down to the numbers. You can bet on them or against them. You can buy or sell them. But you tend to get into trouble if you read them wrong.
Here are some numbers to fully digest as Missouri becomes the 39th state to legalize sports betting.
10: It is the percentage of men between the ages of 18 and 30 in the United States who exhibit behavior indicative of a gambling problem, according to a study conducted by Fairleigh Dickinson University. That is more than three times as much as the general population.
28: That’s the percentage increase in the likelihood of bankruptcy in states that legalized and enabled online sports gambling, according to research recently published by UCLA and the University of Southern California. The same data showed that credit scores and traditional investments in those states fell, while collections increased.
58: That’s the percentage of 18- to 22-year-olds who have engaged in at least one sports betting activity, regardless of age restrictions in their country, according to a study the NCAA published in May that surveyed more than 3,500 people in this age group. The same survey found that 67% of students living on college campuses had bet on sports. The study found that age restrictions — which will be 21 in Missouri — did little to stop or slow minors’ involvement.
60: That’s the percentage of self-described “avid” sports fans in America who believe too many sports betting ads are shown during sporting events, according to a Seton Hall University poll released in February. Ironically, the same percentage of that group (60%) had placed a sports bet. The ads will keep coming. Why? Because they seem to work.
227: That’s the percentage increase in calls regarding problematic sports betting that Ohio’s Gambling Hotline reported in January 2023 compared to January 2022. The difference? Legalized sports gambling launched in the state in January 2023. The annual increase over the full calendar year peaked at 56%. Nearly two-thirds of the requests for help came from men.
2.5 million: That’s the estimated number of American adults who meet the criteria for a serious gambling problem, according to the National Council on Problem Gaming. It believes that four to six million Americans have mild to moderate gambling problems.
119.84 billion: This one is dollars. According to data from the American Gaming Association, this is the mountain of money Americans will have wagered on legal sports betting in 2023. That meant an increase of almost 28% compared to 2022.
Missouri’s embrace of the movement will see the numbers climb even higher. The winners will continue to benefit from this. They include not only those who beat the odds on their individual bets, but also the teams who get their cut, the recipients of staggering advertising dollars and those who cash in on the tax breaks that will soon flow their way.
The losers? They tend to be overlooked. That doesn’t mean they aren’t there.
So, sports fans, please be smart. Parents, talk to your children, especially your sons. Ignoring numbers you don’t like, as if they aren’t there, is a good way to get burned.