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1. Sports Gambling Legalization Latest News
2. When Did Sports Gambling Begin
3. Sports Betting In America
4. The History Of Sports Betting
5. Sports Betting In The Us

The history of humanity is inextricably linked with the history of gambling, as it seems that no matter how far back in time you go there are signs that where groups of people gathered together gambling was sure to have been taking place. Now we are not going to attempt to track every single twist and turn in the evolution of gambling in this article, but what we are going to do is to pick out some of the most important dates to act as milestones on the road to today’s gambling experience.

The Earliest Evidence of Gambling

While it is almost certain that some forms of betting have been taking place since the dawn of human history, the earliest concrete evidence comes from Ancient China where tiles were unearthed which appeared to have been used for a rudimentary game of chance. The Chinese ‘Book of Songs’ makes reference to “the drawing of wood” which suggests that the tiles may have formed part of a lottery type game. We have evidence in the form of keno slips which were used in about 200bc as some sort of lottery to fund state works – possibly including construction of the Great Wall of China. Lotteries continued to be used for civic purposes throughout history – Harvard and Yale were both established using lottery funds – and continue to do so until the present day.

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Dicing with the Law on the Streets of Ancient Rome

The Greek poet Sophocles claimed that dice were invented by a mythological hero during the siege of Troy, and while this may have somewhat dubious basis in fact, his writings around 500bc were the first mention of dice in Greek history. We know that dice existed far earlier than this, since a pair had been uncovered from an Egyptian tomb from 3000bc, but what is certain is that the Ancient Greeks and Romans loved to gamble on all manner of things, seemingly at any given opportunity. In fact all forms of gambling – including dice games – were forbidden within the ancient city of Rome and a penalty imposed on those caught which was worth four times the stake being bet. As a result of this, ingenious Roman citizens invented the first gambling chips, so if they were nabbed by the guards they could claim to be playing only for chips and not for real money. (Note that this ruse will not work if attempted at a Vegas casino).

Playing your Cards Right in China

Most scholars agree that the first playing cards appeared in China in the 9th century, although the exact rules of the games they were used for have been lost to history. Some suggest that the cards were both the game and the stake, like trading card games played by children today, while other sources believe the first packs of cards to have been paper forms of Chinese domino. Certainly the cards used at this time bore very little relation to the standard 52 card decks we know today.

Baccarat in Italy and France

The earliest game still played in casinos today is the two player card game of Baccarat, a version of which was first mentioned as long ago as the 1400s when it migrated from Italy to France. Despite its early genesis, it took hundreds of years and various evolutions to arrive at the game we know today. Although different incarnations of the game have come and gone, the standard version played in casinos all over the world came from Cuba via Britain to the US, with a few alterations to the rules along the way. Although baccarat is effectively more of a spectator sport than a game, it is a feature of just about every casino due to its popularity with high rolling gamblers.

Blackjack through the Ages

Some suggest that the earliest forms of blackjack came from a Spanish game called ventiuna (21) as this game appeared in a book written by the author of Don Quixote in 1601. Or was it the game of trente-un (31) from 1570? Or even quinze (15) from France decades earlier? As with all of these origin stories, the inventors of games of chance were rarely noted in the historical annals. The French game of vingt-et-un in the seventeenth century is certainly a direct forefather of the modern game, and this is the game that arrived in the US along with early settlers from France. The name ‘blackjack’ was an American innovation, and linked to special promotions in Nevada casinos in the 1930s. To attract extra customers, 10 to 1 odds were paid out if the player won with a black Jack of Clubs or Spades together with an Ace of Spades. The special odds didn’t last long, but the name is still with us today.

First Casinos in Italy

The earliest gambling houses which could reasonably be compared to casinos started to appear in the early 17th century in Italy. For example, in 1638, the Ridotto was established in Venice to provide a controlled gambling environment amidst the chaos of the annual carnival season. Casinos started to spring up all over continental Europe during the 19th century, while at the same time in the US much more informal gambling houses were in vogue. In fact steam boats taking prosperous farmers and traders up and down the Mississippi provided the venue for a lot of informal gambling stateside. Now when we think of casinos we tend to picture the Las Vegas Strip, which grew out of the ashes of the Depression in America.

The Little Wheel in Paris

Roulette as we know it today originated in the gaming houses of Paris, where players would have been familiar with the wheel we now refer to (ironically enough) as the American Roulette wheel. It took another 50 years until the ‘European’ version came along with just one green zero, and generations of roulette players can be grateful for that. During the course of the 19th century roulette grew in popularity, and when the famous Monte Carlo casino adopted the single zero form of the game this spread throughout Europe and most of the world, although the Americans stuck to the original double zero wheels.

Poker: Bust to Boom

It’s hard to pin down the precise origin of poker – as with a lot of the games mentioned here, poker seems to have grown organically over decades and possibly centuries from various different card games. Some have poker’s antecedents coming from seventeenth century Persia, while others say that the game we know today was inspired by a French game called Poque. What we do know for sure is that an English actor by the name of Joseph Crowell reported that a recognizable form of the game was being played in New Orleans in 1829, so that is as good a date as any for the birth of poker. The growth of the game’s popularity was fairly sluggish up until world poker tournaments started being played in Vegas in the 1970s. However poker really exploded with the advent of online poker and televised events allowing spectators to see the players’ hands. When amateur player Chris Moneymaker qualified for and won the 2003 world poker championship after qualifying through online play, it allowed everyone to picture themselves as online poker millionaires.

One Armed Bandits Appear in New York

The first gambling machine which resembled the slots we know today was one developed by Messrs Sittman and Pitt in New York, which used the 52 cards on drum reels to make a sort of poker game. Around the same time the Liberty Bell machine was invented by a Charles Fey in San Francisco. This machine proved much more practical in the sense that winnings could be precisely regulated, and marked the beginning of the real slot game revolution. The fact that some new video slot games still feature bell symbols dates back to this early invention. While early machines spewed out cigars and gum instead of money, the money dispensing versions soon became a staple in bars and casinos around the globe, and when the first video slot was invented in 1976 this paved the way for the online video slots which were to follow.

Gambling in the US: Two Sides of the Same Coin

The United States has always had an up and down relationship with gambling, dating back to when the very first European settlers arrived. Whereas Puritan bands of settlers banned gambling outright in their new settlements, those emigrating from England had a more lenient view of gambling and were more than happy to tolerate it. This dichotomous relationship has continued until now, and in 1910 public pressure led to a nationwide prohibition on gambling. Just like the alcohol prohibition of the same era, this proved somewhat difficult to enforce and gambling continued on in an only slightly discreet manner. The Wall Street Crash and the Great Depression that this spawned in the early 1930s led to gambling being legalized again, as for many this was the only prospect of alleviating the grinding poverty which they suffered through. Although gambling is legal in a number of States today –most famously in Las Vegas, Nevada - online gambling is still something of a grey area in the United States. Right now, many international internet casinos are unable to accept American clients, although the signs are that this will change in the near future.

The New Frontier for Gambling

Microgaming is one of the largest casino and slot game developers in the world today, and they are also considered to be pioneers of online gambling. The leap into the world of virtual casinos was taken all the way back in 1994, which in internet terms is kind of like 2300bc! Online gaming was worth over a billion dollars within 5 years, and today is a multibillion dollar industry with over a thousand online casinos and growing. The first live dealer casinos appeared in 2003 courtesy of Playtech, bringing us closer to a hybrid between brick and mortar casinos and the virtual world.

Gambling Has Gone Mobile

Since New Jersey legalized online gambling in 2011, there has been a boom in the interest people have in it. America has seen a move towards legalizing it state by state, as well as experiencing the rapid rise in mobile gambling. Across the globe, internet users are gradually veering away from their desktops and towards their handheld devices. This is true of online gamblers too, wanting to be able to enjoy their favorite games whilst on the go. The top gambling sites out there have recognized a market and have stepped up to deliver. With a wave of impressive mobile focused online gambling destinations taking the world by storm, it's safe to say that desktops are being left far behind in favour of more mobile alternatives.

…The Future

What Comes Next?

It is just about as difficult to predict the future for gambling as it is to uncover some of the origins of the gambling games we know so well today. Much of the focus at the moment is on the mobile gaming market, with online casinos scrambling to make more content compatible with the latest hand held devices. Virtual reality technology is just taking its first steps as a commercial proposition, and you can be sure that there will be gambling applications down the road. How would you like to sit around a virtual poker table with a bunch of your friends from all over the world, share a few laughs, try to tell if you can spot a tell-tale facial tick; and all this from the comfort of your home? VR Headsets can make it happen – maybe not today, but certainly just a few years down the track if technology continues to advance in bounds and leaps.

And after that? Well who knows, but when it comes to gambling all things are possible.

Sports are so often about breaking records and passing torches. To that end, because the passage and implementation of PASPA were for so long deemed the most impactful event in the history of American sports betting, it makes a kind of ironic sense that PASPA’s Supreme Court overturn now holds that lofty distinction. Indeed, the elimination of PASPA is the most watershed moment in the history of US sports betting, as it has allowed an incredible, mostly-underground industry to leap back into the public eye and occupy the public consciousness.

PASPA was relegated to the trash-heap of history on May 14, 2018, and within just six months, seven states rolled out their own sports betting industries to go along with the established market in Nevada. These states – Delaware, New Jersey, Mississippi, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and New Mexico – account for the historic first wave of sports betting states. The first half of 2019 brought about the second wave of sports betting legislation. Over two dozen states had at least one sports betting bill introduced in a legislative chamber and several went on to passing a bill into law. Those states include Montana, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, North Carolina, Tennessee, and New Hampshire.

There are now 18 states in total that have legalized sports wagering. Most industry analysts and political insiders believe that within just a few short years, nearly 80 percent of all US states will have some form of legal, state-sanctioned sports betting product on offer for their residents and visitors. The rate of sports wagering adoption – and the public polling popularity that the pastime enjoys – is truly staggering. Sports betting, after generations of being pushed the fringes of society, is finally finding its rightful home in the mainstream. And that means more jobs, more vibrant local economies, more choice, and – most important of all – more freedom for the tens of millions of honest, hardworking sports bettors in this great nation!

History Of Sports Betting In The USA Before The 20th Century

In the early 19th century, betting on horses was the most popular sport amongst gamblers. Though horse racing betting today involves pari-mutuel pools, horses played a role in developing the history of sports betting in the USA. It was with the establishment of professional baseball in 1876 that traditional sports betting came to the forefront. The National League was founded on February 2, 1876, followed by the American League in 1901. By 1877, however, the game started being influenced by gambling as years later, for example, it was discovered that the Louisville Grays were throwing games. During this time, the general attitude toward sports betting was laxer than throughout any other point in history, with the activity being viewed purely as a form of entertainment. There were even baseball pool cards which are similar to the parlay cards found in DE and other sportsbooks today. An article from the Washington Post in 1894 stated the following about Cap Anson, then-manager of the Chicago Colts:

“Uncle Anson has already started making wagers on the position the Chicago Colts will have in the race for the National League Pennant next year. He put up $100 a few days ago that his team would finish higher up in the race than the Pittsburgh Pirates.”

This goes to show how acceptable betting on sports was during the era, as in current times a manager would never be able to bet on his team. (Just ask Pete Rose!) It was not until 25 years later that the first major sports betting scandal occurred.

History Of Sports Betting In The USA During The 20th Century

After the turn of the century, sports betting was more popular than ever, but the Chicago Black Sox scandal brought its unfettered professional participation to a halt (and sullied the pastime in the eyes of many more puritanical citizens and lawmakers around the nation). Eight players on the Chicago White Sox were bribed into throwing the 1919 World Series, casting a dark shadow over sports betting that is still felt today. Regardless, as the history of sports betting in the USA during the 20th century shows, sports betting continued to grow among the general population, with even more sports coming into the fold. The 1920s are often referred to the “Golden Era” of sports, with collegiate football and basketball becoming popular sports betting options. During the Great Depression, football pool cards were in high demand due to the perception of quick, easy cash.

Though sports betting was prevalent, it is important to note that up until this point, sports betting was actually illegal. However, with no real sports betting laws and a lack of attention from law enforcement, the activity remained commonplace. It was in 1931 that Nevada legalized gambling, though other states remained more or less mum on the matter. Indeed, various New York crime families quickly filled this vacuum, offering numbers games and sports wagering services in states from coast to coast. The participation of the mob in sports betting led to the Interstate Wire Act of 1961 (which was also a gambit to protect state-run lotteries from “illegal” competition), which in-turn forced sports wagering to become a largely local thing in the regions where it was pushed underground. Nevada – particularly Las Vegas – began to be viewed as among the only legitimate places to bet on sports in the US.

Still, betting on sports was not big business in the state until the 1970s. It was during this time that congress lowered the 10% tax on sports bets that bookmakers were required to pay. Within a few years, more states moved toward legalizing sports betting. In 1976, Delaware began their sports lottery, and the Oregon Sports Action parlay game came in 1989. The Montana Lottery was created by voter referendum in 1986, with limited sports pools and fantasy sports betting options.

As more states started to consider legalizing sports betting, the more concerned congress grew. This prompted the government to find a legal means to stop the proliferation of sports betting across America. To achieve this, lawmakers wrote and enacted the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA). PASPA banned sports betting in the United States, except for in the four states that had already established legal sports betting operations, of which NV was the only one with real single-game wagering (as the other states were limited to glorified lottery tickets, sports-themed pull-tabs, and bingo-style games). Of all the moments throughout the history of sports betting in the USA, the passage of PASPA had the biggest impact on the overall betting landscape, and it would continue to limit public access to wagering until its Supreme Court overturn 25 years later (2018).

History Of Las Vegas Sports Betting

Las Vegas opened its first official sportsbook (called “turf clubs” at the time) and started accepting wagers in 1949 and have been doing so ever since. However, there was plenty of illegal sports betting going on in the city before then. Las Vegas is singlehandedly responsible for making sports betting so popular in America and the rest of the world. Another fact about the history of sports betting in the USA is the fact that the “juice” started in Vegas. When the first sportsbook opened in Sin City, there was an agreement with the casino that the book would pay 10% of their earnings to the casino. The sportsbooks way of making up for this money was to charge a “vigorish” on any bet that was placed, and that is why you have to pay juice to this day.

History Of Modern Sports Betting In The USA

When you fast forward to the 21st century, sports betting in the US looks dramatically different than it did in centuries prior. Sports bettors are able to bet on every sport imaginable, from football and basketball to tennis and golf and more. The point spread was introduced more than 50 years ago, but there are now a variety of straight and exotic wagers that bettors have become accustomed to. The advent of the Internet also changed how sports fans could wager, making betting on sports much more accessible. With Nevada being the only state offering single-game wagering, sports enthusiasts had very limited options when it came to safely placing bets. In the early 2000s, online sportsbooks began appearing all over the US market and became the norm for betting on sports. No matter where a bettor was located, they would be able to find Vegas-style sports betting action from the comfort of their home.

Just as the spread of sports betting signaled the US government to step in and stop expansion, the same incident occurred as online sports betting increased in popularity. In 2006, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) was stealthily included as part of the larger SAFE Port Act. The SAFE Port Act was concerned with port security, making the UIGEA a completely unrelated law in the grand scheme. Signed into law on October 13, 2006, by then-President George W. Bush, the UIGEA is an act that prevents certain payment instruments from being used for online gambling transactions. The FDIC requires certain US financial institutions to monitor and restrict certain designated payment systems that include credit cards, checks, and wire transfers. Though the law does not make online sports betting illegal, nor does it punish bettors in any way, the UIGEA did cause many online sports betting sites to leave the US market.

Still, there are plenty of sports betting sites that safely serve USA sports bettors. All of the sites are based offshore, in locations like Costa Rica and Panama where remote gaming is legal. These sites are licensed and regulated to accept US players even without being physically located in the States. As they operate outside of US jurisdiction, they are free to post odds, accept wagers, and send payouts to America residents.

The Future Of Sports Betting In The USA

Sports Gambling Legalization Latest News

Sports is so often about breaking records and passing torches. To that end, because the passage and implementation of PASPA was for so long deemed the most impactful event in the history of American sports betting, it makes a kind of ironic sense that PASPA’s Supreme Court overturn now holds that lofty distinction. Indeed, the elimination of PASPA is the most watershed moment in the history of US sports betting, as it has allowed an incredible, mostly-underground industry to leap back into the public eye and occupy the public consciousness.

When Did Sports Gambling Begin

PASPA was relegated to the trash-heap of history on May 14, 2018, and within just six months, seven states rolled out their own sports betting industries to go along with the established market in Nevada. These states – Delaware, New Jersey, Mississippi, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and New Mexico – account for the historic first wave of sports betting states. However, the 2019 legislative session brought the count of states actively debating the legalization of the pastime to more than two dozen.

Most industry analysts and political insiders believe that within just a few short years, nearly 80 percent of all US states will have some form of legal, state-sanctioned sports betting product on offer for their residents and visitors. The rate of sports wagering adoption – and the public polling popularity that the pastime enjoys – is truly staggering. Sports betting, after generations of being pushed the fringes of society, is finally finding its rightful home in the mainstream. And that means more jobs, more vibrant local economies, more choice, and – most important of all – more freedom for the tens of millions of honest, hardworking sports bettors in this great nation!

How Long Have Legal Online Sports Betting Websites Been Around?

Sports Betting In America

Legal online sports betting websites have been operating for over two decades now. They became extremely popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s at the same time that the internet became a dominant part of our daily lives. While many of the domestic sites ceased operation in 2006, offshore online sportsbooks have continued to serve Americans since their inception over 20 years ago.

Why is Casino Gambling Legal In My State And Not Sports Betting?

The reason mainly stems from federal restrictions on sports betting. PASPA was first signed in 1992 and it banned any state from legalizing sports betting until it was repealed in 2018. Because the legislative process takes time, states are only just now slowly considering and enacting new provisions for this activity.

Why Was Nevada The Only State Able To Offer Legal Sports Betting?

Nevada opened the first legal sportsbook back in 1949. When PASPA was put into place in 1992, Nevada was essentially grandfathered into the law because it already had its own rules in place for sports betting. Other states like Montana, Oregon, and Delaware were also grandfathered into the law but only Nevada had traditional single-game wagering.

When Did Sports Betting Become Available To Other States?

States outside of Nevada first became able to legalize sports wagering after PASPA was repealed by the US Supreme Court in May of 2018. Since then 17 states have taken the initiative to pass a sports betting bill and sign it into law. Many other states considered the topic during their last legislative session but did not pass a bill. They are expected to do it again, especially now that neighboring states have an edge in their gambling industry.

The History Of Sports Betting

When Will Legal Sports Betting Come To My State?

Sports Betting In The Us

That all depends on how your state constitution is shaped and how state lawmakers feel about the subject. Certain states, such as Utah, simply won’t legalize sports betting because of the state culture. Other states, such as Maryland, have to wait in order to legalize it because the state constitution requires voters to approve gambling expansion and so residents will have to wait until the next time they can hit the polls.