NFL Vegas Franchise Validates Sports Betting Industry
A 1992 federal law made it illegal to accept a wager on all sports except in Nevada. The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, known as PASPA, passed in 1992 is now under attack by state gaming advocates who want legal and regulated sports betting for their state. Recent NFL poll data reveals fans waiting to wager.
The NFL Vegas franchise Oakland Raiders will validate sports betting and change the national doctrine to accept sports betting for those states who want the tax revenue and whose residents will provide a majority referendum.
If the Raiders along with the sports gambling industry can plan a smooth relocation and adjustment to Las Vegas in 2020, some state politicians and NFL executives will admit other states could support a legal and regulated sports betting structured operation. Legal challenges against PASPA was not successful in court and the NFL continues to oppose any legalization by the states. But the approved NFL Raider move to Las Vegas poses an implied conflict of interest by the NFL and if their opposition to legal sports betting will be shifting toward a compromise. Legalized sports betting in Las Vegas is a fact the NFL cannot hide from or denounce Vegas, as it has done many times, since a part of their family will be living and playing there — the Oakland (Las Vegas) Raiders. Back in February there was a stalled financial deal it was uncertain if Las Vegas was the place to test a market for an NFL franchise to be successful. Those concerns were answered.
The NFL brass is slowly realizing that their franchise Raiders are in the best hands possible. There is no panic button or anxiety ritual by these NFL executives because their work is done for them. When all gambling is highly regulated like Las Vegas, the concerns about sports betting is diminished by the Nevada Gaming Board and the detection systems they have in place. They have been around for decades and get better each year from advances in technology.
There are very sophisticated fraud and gambling detection systems monitoring everything — a big brother.
“With respect to the NFL, I think our interests collectively are the same. We want to ensure the integrity with the sport. We want to ensure there is no black eye on the state and the gaming industry in any way” said Gaming Control Board Chairman A. G. Burnett. Burnett said sports book operators know their gaming license is on the line and they`re all equally good in finding out if something is not right. That is the regulated strength of betting policies in place and why Las Vegas is the best at what they do. The sports books are the first line of defense and they are in the business of detecting fraud and abuse of any kind.
Nobody can just walk into a sports book and bet a large amount of money on a game without being detected. Any large bet above the house limit needs approval so right away your presence is on the map. An unknown bettor looking to place a $50K bet or higher is profiled by facial recognition software and everything about him is known in minutes. Of course it is all legal if the book accepts the bet and this happens a lot with the “whale bettors” that are well known.
If an unknown bettor is approved he is in the system and the game he bet on is scrutinized for any possible abnormality. Technology will connect people, places and things for any investigation if necessary. Las Vegas is the last place in the world you want to take advantage of with a scheme or fix with another cohort. The risks far outweigh the rewards and there is no guarantee that a fix will work.
