The world of sports wagering in the U.S. is changing at a rapid pace. In the two years since the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports and Protection Act (PASPA), 18 states and the District of Columbia have legalized sports betting. Only seven states have no sports betting legislation whatsoever. For regulators and policymakers, this short timeframe—combined with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic—means that a lot of decisions have been made quickly, oftentimes without any experience with sports wagering.
Thus, UNLV International Gaming Institute (IGI), the world’s largest academic center dedicated to informing the global gaming industry, and GVC Foundation U.S. (GVC), the charitable arm of the online sports wagering company of the same name, set out to create an accessible-for-newcomers report to outline some key questions that stakeholders may have as decisions continue to be made in the realm of sports betting and beyond.