The Esports Integrity Coalition Responds to Supreme Court Decision on Sports Betting in the United States
The Esports Integrity Coalition has responded to the Supreme Court decision to overturn the federal ban on sports betting within the United States.
Following the enactment of the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, regulated sports gambling was made illegal across the United States other than the state of Nevada.
Although various states and organizations attempted to lobby for the law to be overturned so that citizens could place bets on different events in an authorized fashion, the decision held strong time and time again.
- More: Federal Ruling Gives States the Right to Legalize Online Sports Betting, Which Includes Esports
However, on Monday, May 14th, the Supreme Court decided to overturn the 1992 law, giving states the right and opportunity to potentially legalize sports gambling in the coming years, which generated a discussion between community members on both sides of the decision.
The ruling will also allow for gambling in the world of esports – a practice which has already been seen in certain nations where sports gambling is legal, and regulated by their respective governments.
When discussing the decision to allow federally regulated sports and esports gambling, the Esports Integrity Coalition, a group formed to fight against ‘issues of common interest’ such as match manipulation and betting fraud, mentioned how ‘well-enforced’ regulation is the proper way to handle gambling.
There is no doubt that the availability of gambling in sports can be a threat to integrity, but good operators have as much to lose as anyone – betting will happen regardless, so good regulation well enforced is the only sensible option. Prohibition doesn’t work at all.
— ESIC (@ESIC_Official) May 14, 2018
Now that the ruling is overturned, states will begin to decide if they want to allow regulated sports gambling, yet it may take multiple years before the law will come to fruition in some areas.
We will continue to provide more coverage on the story as more information is made available, including its impact on popular ‘betting sites’ for games such as Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.