Will it be a Slam Dunk for the US Sports Betting Ban?
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Will it be a slam dunk for the US sports betting wagering ban?
By Natalie Sherman
Business reporter, New york city
A ban on sports betting wagering in many US states could be reversed by a case being considered by the Supreme Court.
The state of New Jersey is challenging the 1992 federal law that largely forbade sports betting gambling, describing the matter as a "states' rights" issue.
The case, which started on Monday, follows New Jersey homeowners enacted 2011 to legalise sports betting.
A group of sports betting leagues opposes sports betting on video games, which they fear will motivate match-fixing.
Lower courts have regularly ruled against New Jersey, saying it is within the federal government's power to restrict a state's policy options.
The Supreme Court opted to hear the case nonetheless in the middle of a larger shift in American attitudes toward sports betting.
Before 1976, Nevada - home of the Las Vegas strip - was the only state with legal gambling establishments outside Native American lands.
But in the last few years, states starving for tax income in the wake of the financial crash have actually enacted a rash of looser sports betting laws, collecting large levies on gambling profits.
There are now 24 states with business gambling establishments - roughly double the number a decade earlier.
Despite the main ban, which currently exempts Nevada and three other states, unlawful sports betting wagering is swarming in the US.
Americans position about $154bn in prohibited sports betting bets every year, according to the American Gaming Association.
The association's president, Geoff Freeman, described the federal ban, external as an "utter failure" earlier this year.
It says the UK is an example of a nation where sports betting wagering is commonplace.
"It's time for Washington to stop depriving states of important tax revenue and enable them to reap the rewards of a regulated market," Mr Freeman stated.
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More than 15 states submitted documents in support of New Jersey in the event. A handful have currently passed laws to authorise sports betting wagering in the occasion of a change.
'Times have altered'
On Monday, as attorneys began arguments for the Supreme Court, some more conservative judges appeared sceptical of the existing law.
The court is to decide in June 2018.
"If we are successful here we might have bets being taken in New Jersey within two weeks of a choice by the court," stated outgoing New Jersey governor Chris Christie after going to the court hearing. "We're prepared in New Jersey - we're all set to go."
No matter the court's last ruling, Congress might also use up the argument amid more comprehensive conversation about online gaming and e-sports betting.
Even some of the expert sports betting leagues have actually begun to change their positions on the question of gambling.
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Adam Silver, National Basketball Association commissioner, supported a federal law that would develop a consistent set of guidelines across the US. "Times have altered," he wrote in a 2014 viewpoint piece, external.
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