Sports betting has spread to 38 states and Washington, D.C., over the past five years. In that time, states have also seen massive increases in calls to gambling addiction hotlines. Plus, more news to use from around the country in this week’s State and Local Roundup.
This weekend is the Super Bowl, a spectacle that reveals a lot about choices state governments have made in recent years about sports betting.
Experts expect Americans to bet a record $23 billion on Sunday’s game. States have fueled the massive uptick in online and in-person wagering on sporting contests, even though they have received relatively modest revenue increases and have seen dramatic increases in reports of people struggling with gambling addiction.
The showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday takes place in Las Vegas, a city that the National Football League and other professional sports leagues shunned for decades because of its famous ties to gambling, and sports betting in particular
Route Fifty
By Daniel C. Vock | FEBRUARY 9, 2024