February 2017 (Episode 2) - Gambling in Sports

Seton Hall Sports Poll

If younger people are to set the trend for the future of legalized gambling in America, they are certainly showing support for the concept today. Asked by the Seton Hall Sports Poll this week, “It’s been said a lot of people bet on sporting events anyway, so government should allow it and tax it. It’s also been said legal betting on sporting events is a bad idea because it promotes too much gambling and damages the integrity of sports. Which comes closer to your view?”……. ….46% of Americans stated support for allowing betting on sporting events, while 42% said it was bad idea. This is a substantial increase from 2010 when a Fairleigh Dickinson poll showed 39% of Americans supported it, with 54% saying it was a bad idea. Younger people are twice as likely to say “allow it” than those over 60. There is a clear age trend in support by age group: 67% of 18-29, 48% of 30-44, 42% of 45-59 and 30% of 60+. The age trend also was demonstrable on a question of whether it was appropriate for NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s to call for legalized betting on a strictly regulated basis. 56% of those 18-29 supported his stance as appropriate, 34% of those 30-44, 28% of those 45-59 and 21% of those 60+ supported the stance. Similarly, addressing New Jersey’s attempt of recent years to allow for sports gambling, 61% of those 18-29 said they should have passed the law, 50% of those 30-44, 47% of those 45-59 and 33% of those 60+ supported it.