Don’t Let Greed Tarnish the Future of Sports Betting

  • February 09, 2026

Sports competition has been an important part of the human experience since the earliest days of civilization. The widespread viewership of live sports on television, epitomized in the 1970s by ABC’s Wide World of Sports program that promised viewers “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat,” ingrained competitive games into our collective culture. Friendly competition between nations at events like the Olympic Games are not just entertainment, but also a tremendous source of national pride.

However, when it comes to the world of sports gambling, pride takes a backseat to another deadly sin: Greed. Integrity issues in sports have been around since the day of the toga. Some of the more infamous scandals include the Chicago Black Sox, Pete Rose, Boston College and Arizona State basketball, NBA referee Tim Donaghy and a number of post Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (“PASPA”)1 incidents alleging illicit activities. Whenever there is the combination of money, an event whose outcome is unknown, and a human being, greed has an open door to potentially influence and impact the end result. The human element is faced with, and sometimes fails, the integrity test.

Who Is Responsible for Maintaining Integrity?

Even though competitors are most directly responsible for the outcome of a sporting contest, it’s not enough to simply focus on their performance. Greed also affects referees, coaches and trainers – anyone who can influence the outcome of an event for a price. Beyond match-fixing and the blatant corruption of fair competition, sports betting operators and responsible gaming (“RG”) service providers must also be held accountable for balancing short-term profit with actions that support the long-term success of the legal sports gambling ecosystem.

  • Betting Operators – While sports betting operators design the next creative wager to pitch their customers and the next celebrity TV commercial to sell it to the betting public, they must do so responsibly. First, they should be outwardly transparent related to contest odds and wagers, so bettors truly understand how adding that second, third, or fourth team to that betting slip impacts their chances. They must ensure that their internal control systems are doing what they are set up to do. Operators must identify suspicious activity and report to leagues and regulators any irregularities. Finally, they must address underage gaming and eliminate predatory practices on college campuses.
  • Sports Leagues – Many of the professional leagues were anti-sports betting pre-PASPA, but they have discovered that legal sports gambling breathes new life into their product. Now there are reasons for fans to watch games between non-contenders or to pull for specific outcomes during “garbage time.” With the added pressures from betting fans, amplified by social media, it’s more important than ever for leagues to monitor player performance, injury information and the mental and physical health and well-being of their athletes.
  • State Gaming Commissions – In states with legalized gambling, the influx of new tax revenue from sports betting operators has been a godsend for many state budgets. This creates enormous pressure to keep the money flowing, but regulators must not ignore their primary responsibility: to ensure that operators and their systems are acting responsibly and are able to quickly detect any suspicious activities. To do that effectively, commissions should have an enforcement arm as part of their regulatory responsibility. If they currently do not have enforcement powers, they should press for statutory change to establish such authority. They should collaborate with integrity monitors, sports betting operators and leagues to identify potentially problematic wagers or those that may lead to impropriety and eliminate them or set reasonable limits.

Responsible Gaming Is Everyone’s Responsibility

RG efforts should not be viewed by anyone as “a necessary evil.” It is a necessary social and human service. Start by establishing a uniform gambling hotline phone/text number and creating a uniform RG message. We have all seen the RG message at the bottom of sports betting advertisements, but is that two-point font effective? States should revisit how much tax revenue generated by sports betting is being spent on RG efforts. Now that some states have been operational for several years, it could be time to increase the RG allocation.

As the sports betting product has matured, steps are being taken that provide increased communication, collaboration and understanding of the role of the various stakeholders.2 If leagues identify wagers that pose an increased level of risk, operators and regulators must listen to them and be prepared to eliminate those wagers, not just reduce the betting limit. Regulators must work with the operators to establish a consistent RG message that not only is standard but can be read without the need for a microscope. Leagues must continue to educate players and league personnel about the risk of illegal activity related to sporting contests. Leagues must place a high priority on players’ mental and physical health. Stakeholders must continue the trend of working collaboratively.

Don’t Let Greed Tarnish the Product

It is important to recognize that all is not gloom and doom. Sports betting has served as a great economic boost to sports betting operators, sports leagues and many state budgets where sports betting is legal. It has also provided another entertainment outlet to the sports bettor who hasn’t let greed or other issues get in the way. In addition, the sports betting operators, the leagues and the integrity monitors have been very successful in identifying and reporting suspicious behavior.

Ultimately, the future of sports betting hinges on a commitment to balance and integrity. Each day there are hundreds of sporting contests where hundreds of thousands of wagers can be made. Limitless options and varieties of those wagers exist, resulting in countless opportunities for greed to take hold. On the whole, the system is working, and most stakeholders are reaping the benefits of a regulated sports betting industry. There is a need for balance, not panic, as long as we don’t let greed tarnish the product.

Footnotes:

1: 28 U.S.C. §§3701-3704

2: Rybaltowski, Matt, “2026 integrity preview: How will regulators in US respond to bevy of sports betting scandals?” iGaming Business website, (Jan. 7, 2025), 

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February 09, 2026

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Tom Anapolis

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