A new poll conducted by The Washington Post and The University of Massachusetts Lowell has detailed that for the ‘first time most Americans support wagering on professional sports’.
A majority of 55% of participants surveyed detailed support for legalised US sports betting, whilst 33% are in opposition. The polls finding ‘reverses the public sentiment of 1993’ in which 56% of American disapproved of industry legalisation, following the approval of PASPA 1992 regulations prohibiting sports betting at a US federal level.
The Washington Post discloses further information relating to the changing nature of US sports fans’ engagement with betting. The Post-UMass poll finds that at present 1-in-5 sports fans (21%) have placed a wager on ‘pro sports’ with a significant engagement detailed by men under the age of 40.
The new poll is published as the US Supreme Court prepares to rehear the appeal by the State of New Jersey to annul PASPA provisions, allowing New Jersey to set its own sports betting laws.
Taking the appeal to the highest US legal court, New Jersey governors are seeking to convince five of ten US Justices to approve their mandate for a reworking of PASPA provisions at state level.
Supporting New Jersey’s cause, industry body The American Gaming Association (AGA) is scheduled to hold a Washington stakeholder briefing today on Capitol Hill detailing the benefits of legalising sports betting.
2017 has been marked as a ‘new dawn’ for US sports betting legalisation, with a number of industry commentators believing that the Trump Administration will be open to an actual reform of US Gambling laws.
Last January, prior to taking full US Presidential duties, President Trump stated to national sports media that his administration could look to restructure US gambling laws, focusing on licensed sports betting. Trump would detail that a clear mandate would be needed taking into account the concerns of all national stakeholders; the police, pro-leagues, gambling enterprises, and state lawmakers.
