New Jersey Sports Betting Battle Rages On

An aerial view of Atlantic City, NJ.

News Americas, NEWARK, NJ, Mon. Dec. 15, 2014: A recent court case saw a US federal judge blocking a New Jersey law which was originally put forward to allow legal betting on sporting events in particular areas of the state.

Officials in the state proposed a change in the law in order to bring in more revenue for the gambling industry within the Atlantic City resort. The formerly thriving gambling zone has suffered in recent years as casinos opening in rival states continue to take business, while officials have noticed a correlation in gambling and sports betting, bringing cause to the proposed law.

Online competition has also been a further obstacle in Atlantic City’s takings. With online gambling recently becoming legalized in New Jersey, gamblers are now turning to the online casino world rather than spending extra disposable income on travelling into Atlantic City and staying in hotels. Moreover, with arguably more choice online and the opportunity to place ‘free bets’, the online market is offering something which Atlantic City simply cannot match.

The proposed law has attracted criticism from representatives within some of America’s biggest sports, including the National Basketball Association and the National Football League. In October, the NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball and the National Collegiate Athletic Association successfully filed a lawsuit against the law, stating that it violated the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act 1992, which imposes a ban on state-sponsored sports betting.

It poses an interesting question for American sports as we know them today. In February, the annual Super Bowl event broke world records when it managed to pull in 111.5 million viewers. Should these sporting associations not recognise the immense popularity of their sport, and in turn make the most of the lucrative sports betting opportunities available?

One particularly interesting case is the proposed Major League Soccer stadium that is to be built in the gambling paradise of Las Vegas. Plans are currently being put in place to secure a 24,000-seat stadium which could house Las Vegas’ very own soccer team by 2017. Representatives are hoping that Las Vegas will become not only the “sports betting capital” of the world but also a major pro sports venue.

With this in mind, should New Jersey follow suit? Federal judges should perhaps consider the entire income of New Jersey as a whole – as a state which depends largely on its betting contingent, the move could save New Jersey from losing out to the digital age.