Image
Sports betting and the NFL: Why the league embraced gambling and what’s next
Until very recently, professional sports leagues distanced themselves from betting of any kind. This year, bettors will wager an estimated $35 billion on NFL games. OHIO professor and sports betting expert Jim Strode explains why.
Alex Semancik | November 14, 2024
Share:
As recent as 20 years ago, sports betting was something generally seen as taboo. Until very recently, professional sports leagues distanced themselves from gambling of any kind. This year, betting on the is at an all-time high with an this season, a 30 percent increase from last year, according to the
The NFL’s embrace of sports betting was sudden but not unexpected. Jim Strode, an expert in sports betting, says a 2018 Supreme Court decision is one factor that opened the floodgates for the NFL to go all in on gambling. Strode is an associate professor of Sport Management in Ƶ’s College of Business and has recently .
“The NFL, like all professional sports leagues, is a business looking for ways to generate revenue,” said Strode. “Many professional sports leagues kept sports betting an arm's length away due to the history of corruption [and organized crime] involved in sports gambling. When the , states were able to not only legalize [sports betting], but also regulate it.”
Strode went on to explain that the NFL could now point to the fact that sports betting is a legal activity when further integrating it into their brand and culture. Because it is now legally accessible and something their consumers want, it's ultimately a way for the league to generate more interest which translates to more revenue.