Advocating for legal sports betting nationwide
By Chris Kudialis, Las Vegas Sun
Legal betting nationwide on professional sports would help protect the integrity of American sports while cutting down substantially on black market wagering, former NBA Commissioner David Stern said this week.
Speaking at Las Vegas’ Global Gaming Expo, Stern echoed the words of his successor and current NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who has advocated for nationwide legalization of betting since taking over the position in 2014.
“There’s a lot out there that’s being bet illegally,” Stern said during a 50-minute talk with American Gaming Association President Geoff Freeman in front of about 500 show attendees. “If we can fix this, it would be a big hit to organized crime.”
Anywhere from $100 billion to $300 billion is spent annually on illegal sports wagering, according to estimates from scholars and the American Gaming Association.