Gaming payments set for a boost from NFL's kickoff

As bans on sports betting ease in more states, payment processors are counting on new revenue streams, particularly as the NFL season gets underway.

Roughly 15% of the U.S. adult population, about 38 million, are planning to bet on the National Football League (NFL) this season according to data from a survey commissioned by the American Gaming Association (AGA). Additionally, 39% of self-described avid NFL fans plan to place a bet on the NFL this season. Legalization of sports betting is estimated to bring in an additional $2.33 billion to the NFL through gambling advertising and sponsorship as well as increased fan engagement according to the AGA.

“The expansion of the legal sports betting market has led consumers to wager over $10.3 billion legally on sporting events since May 2018. The expansion of legal betting is at the expense of illegal, offshore betting websites,” said Bill Miller, president and CEO of the AGA.

Legalized sports betting is quickly becoming a multi-billion dollar jackpot for consumers, states, payment processors and sports teams as illegal underground and offshore activity transitions to legal avenues including regulated casinos, mobile apps and online platforms.

Since the Supreme Court’s decision in May 2018 to strike down the 1992 federal law which prohibited states from authorizing legal sports betting the reaction has been rapid as states and the industry have moved to promote legal sports betting. Currently there are 12 states where sports betting has been legalized, up from five in 2018 according to Legal Sports Report. There are an additional five states (Montana, Illinois, Tennessee, New Hampshire and North Carolina) that are pending launches this year with even more states hotly debating bills to also enact similar legislation.

“The legal sports betting market is just getting started. Americans love to bet on sports and giving them a safe and regulated option will grow the market. It’s in everyone’s best interest to move illegal bets to the legal environment where consumers can have protections, it can be regulated and states earn valuable tax revenues,” Miller said.