Betting has been around since the very first games were invented thousands of years ago. However, the legality of this activity can significantly vary from country to country.
Legalizing sports betting undoubtedly brings some clear pros and cons. It’s an extensive topic that requires thorough attention and discussion. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the most notable pros of legal sports betting.
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Legal Betting Reduces Illegal Betting
The logic behind this argument is simple. The more legal betting outlets there are the fewer illegal sports betting shops will stay in business. This is similar to the online poker situation, where players prefer regulated sites if they have an option.
Looking at both sides of the coin on this issue from the bettor’s perspective, the benefits are undoubtedly advantageous.
Making gambling illegal doesn’t eliminate it. Instead, people often find ways to operate behind the scenes and engage in underground betting activities.
The problem with these black market betting organizations is that they’re not governed by law. In other words, nothing guarantees that your money is safe or that you’ll be paid out if you win a large amount of money.
On top of this, illegal betting also brings about organized crime, making the activity even shadier and far from any regulations or institutional reach.
When betting is legalized, punters can rely on the fact that they’re betting in a stable and regulated environment. You know that you’ll always get paid out, no matter how small or big your due payout amount is.
More importantly, you know there is a clear set of rules and that they have someone to go to if you experience a betting-related issue.
The newly regulated betting market in the United States is a perfect example of this. Various sports betting operators are going from strength to strength, and people are flocking to these sites.
Until recently, New York was one of the states where only on-site betting was available, but things are starting to change as several online operators, including Fanduel New York, have been granted betting licenses.
Better Quality of Betting Options
A strong and well-regulated market is bound to attract more bettors than a dubious and unreliable one. When sports betting is properly legalized, more people will want to participate in betting activities.
This drives up the market demand and makes sportsbooks create better offers and more enticing odds to sway potential customers into their direction.
Nowadays, this benefit is obvious in the online betting world. If you’re an online punter, you can take advantage of great bonuses just for signing up and depositing money into your betting account.
Also, betting sites frequently compete to offer the best odds. As a bettor, all of this only brings positive aspects and makes betting more exciting and profitable.
Great Revenue and Stable Tax Income
From the regulator’s perspective, legalizing betting activities provides a massive and stable revenue for a country’s economy.
Legal bookies and betting sites have to pay taxes for operating in a particular country. And, the amounts they have to set aside can often reach some staggering numbers.
Let’s take the state of New Jersey as an example, as it’s one of a handful of US states that have fully legalized and regulated sports betting and online sports betting.
In 2020, a tough financial year struck by the Covid-19 pandemic, the state still recorded almost $50 million of tax money directly from legalized betting and gambling sources.
New York struggled in 2020, exactly because the state only allowed on-site betting, and COVID-19 restrictions caused closures of all gambling venues for several months during the year.
There are similar examples in many countries across the globe that have gone down the route of legalizing sports betting in the past few years.
Increasing in Sport’s Popularity
Betting makes watching sports more fun and exciting. If you have some money on the line, you’ll cheer harder and watch the games more passionately.
Whether it’s in bars or sportsbooks, bettors often get together to watch the big games they’ve bet on. Although the latter venues can’t accept bets, they still profit from the influx of people on game day.
A legal betting environment makes the sport itself more viewed and popular. The more people bet on it and view it, the more popular the sport will be.
In return, when the sport becomes more popular, bookmakers create more enticing offers, which attracts even more bettors. This is a never-ending cycle that only gets better the bigger it becomes.
Legal Sports Betting – An Amazing Industry If Properly Regulated
To sum up the advantages of legal sports betting, there are strong reasons why legal sports betting is the best way to go when it comes to this industry.
A legal environment supports a healthy sector and allows sports bettors to enjoy betting on their favorite competitions in complete safety for them and their betting bankrolls.
Of course, the conversation of whether sports betting should be legal or not will not end anytime soon. On a global scale, it has been a hot topic for decades, if not centuries, in some countries.
Arguably, some disadvantages come with legal sports betting. It can spoil the integrity of the sports and potentially lead to addiction among susceptible bettors.
But, the positives largely outweigh the negatives. With proper regulation and strict government oversight, legal sports betting can benefit both the state and the individual.
Current trends show that legal sports betting has been getting more significant traction in the past years, and hopefully, this tendency will continue in the future.
