What Happened to Sports Betting?

It used to be that the only kinds of betting that you could find were sports betting, horse racing and card games. Then slot machines came into the picture, and a ton of other games, but it used to be much simpler. Bookmakers were small time guys who made their money from people placing their bets. There was no advertising or going after those that did not pay their bets, and they made good wages from the people who did.

However, in this day and age of bigger is better, the sports booking enterprise has been overshadowed by all of these other gambling options. Almost every state offers at least some kind of betting that is legal – lotteries, slot machines, bingo machines, table games, etc. However, no one talks about sports betting except for Vegas.

Nevada is the only state that allows legalized sports betting. This means that no other state really gives the average Joe a chance at getting ahead in any sort of gambling business. Slot machine players might like going to a casino, but they aren’t going to be able to buy one. Lotteries are state run and the most you can hope for is to run a convenience store that offers it.

Online betting parlors are not the same thing, and they have been shut down anyway. Many were in favor of that, but people have a tendency to think of sports bookies and the Sopranos in the same single thought. Betting parlors could be taxed by the state that they are located, bringing in additional revenue for the state, as well as allowing more people to own a small business venture. People bet on sports all the time in office pools and the like, but if it were regulated, it could end up being a very successful venture for many people.



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