Sports betting is making headlines everywhere you look. Here are some of the week’s biggest stories
Why Pro Sports are Rethinking the Ban on Sports Betting
By Jonathan Berr
February 13, 2017
Slowly but surely, professional sports leagues are warming to the idea of fans gambling on their games, largely as a way to connect with them in a digital world that makes it increasingly hard to get their attention.
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said last week he was re-examining baseball’s ban on wagering, which dates back nearly a century to the 1919 Black Sox Scandal. That’s when mistreated Chicago White Sox players acted in cahoots with gamblers to purposely lose the World Series.
“Sports betting happens,” Manfred said at a Yahoo Finance conference. “Whether it’s legalized here or not, it’s happening out there.”
Sports Gambling a South by Southwest Topic?
By Nick Sortal
February 14, 2017
There’s music, art, theater and … sports gambling?
Yes, the biggest topic on the American Gaming Association’s agenda has crossed over into the mainstream now, and here’s the evidence: the South by Southwest Conference & Festivals, an annual gathering focused on the major entertainment issues of our country, has booked a session to talk about the future of betting on sports.
There are now Two New York Sports Betting Bills
By Dustin Gouker
February 14, 2017
The sports betting effort in the Empire State kicked off early in the year, with a bill from state Sen. Tony Avella. A “same as” — or identical — piece of legislation popped up recently in the Assembly, as well.
What would the bills do? They would alter the constitution of the state so that casinos and racetracks could offer sports wagering. It would add this passage (in part) to the constitution in article 1, section 9, excepting sports betting from the restrictions on gambling:
