AGA CEO: “Illegal / Unregulated Gambling Biggest Threat to Industry, Top Priority”

• AGA CEO Bill Miller Shares End-of-Year Sports Gambling Industry Insights, Threats

• U.S. Sports Betting Market Will Close 2022 Marking New Annual Revenue Record

• AGA Will “Continue to Cultivate Champions on Capitol Hill and in State Governments”

AGA CEO Bill Miller Shares End-of-Year Sports Gambling Industry Insights, Threats

The end of a year often inspires reflection, and as 2022 comes to a close, Bill Miller, President & CEO of the American Gaming Association, had some interesting insights into the state of legal U.S. sports betting and shared his thoughts and conclusions with YOGONET Gaming News.

With over 30 U.S. states now having launched their own versions of a legal sports gambling market – some with retail or mobile options, many with both – a shift has begun to happen in terms of the way sports bettors used to gamble and how they get to place their action now.

In May 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned PASPA and gave each state the right to legalize, regulate, and tax its own sports betting market, but prior to that gamblers relied on illegal and unregulated sportsbooks to handle their wagers.

Thankfully, that is changing nowadays, and those questionable operators are not only considered taboo but they are also seen as dangerous as CEO Miller told YOGONET:

“Illegal and unregulated gambling is the biggest threat to our industry and combating it will continue to be a top priority for the AGA in 2023 … our mission is to foster a policy and business environment where legal gaming can thrive.”

It’s already happening, and, according to Miller, it’s paying off at record levels.

U.S. Sports Betting Market Will Close 2022 Marking New Annual Revenue Record

Regulated (and therefore safe) sports gambling has been an industry priority, but it’s the money that keeps everyone interested in this new market, and so far it would seem that this venture has been financially worth it to those who have invested their time in money getting it launched.

The numbers are eye-popping and in many cases have far exceeded expectations, and in 2022 at year’s end, things could not be any better, as CEO Miller told YOGONET:

“We'll close the year marking a new annual revenue record as combined commercial and tribal revenue is on pace to surpass $100 billion for the year.”

That’s a brand new income stream that once flowed out of state and out of the country and into the pockets of whoever owns all those unregulated sportsbooks and illegal bookie operations, now taxable and creating funds that can be reinvested in the residents and state infrastructure.

The key, according to Miller, is cooperation with the powers that be.

AGA Will “Continue to Cultivate Champions on Capitol Hill and in State Governments”

It takes many hands to circumvent all the legal red tape and legislative hurdles standing in the way of a well-run and profitable sports betting market, and Miller’s AGA is attempting a three-prong approach to involving more forces:

·       Build gaming champions

·       Inform stakeholders through research

·       Convene the global gaming community

The future looks bright for the U.S. legal sports betting market, and AGA CEO Miller told YOGONET that “the AGA will continue to cultivate champions on Capitol Hill and in state governments, especially as we welcome 74 new members of Congress from gaming states.”

Sports gambling in the U.S. is a reality that has existed since the country’s inception, and now that market is being regulated and made responsible by the AGA and many other industry insiders, a wise direction to take since this recreational activity isn’t going away.