People in North Carolina will likely have more interest in this year’s NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments because for the first time, they will be able to legally bet on the games via smartphone apps and computers.
The number of states allowing legal sports betting has increased for the sixth consecutive year since the last March Madness. A total of 38 states and the District of Columbia currently allow some form of sports betting, with 30 states and the nation’s capital allowing online betting.
That’s a much better situation than Nevada, where people could legally bet on games during the 2018 college basketball tournament before the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for expansion.
Sports betting rules vary from state to state. Some states prohibit betting on the state’s college teams or the performance of specific players. Others allow betting on not only the outcome of any college game, but also on a variety of other things, such as a specific player’s points, rebounds, and assists.
Here’s some information about sports betting as the tournament kicks off, with the men’s tournament starting on Tuesday and the women’s tournament on Wednesday.
a lot of money
Fans have long been filling out NCAA tournament rosters while placing bets at the office pool or with friends and family. But these casual bets are increasingly being supplemented by more formal gambling.
According to the American Gambling Association, bets on all sports through legal betting sites totaled more than $121 billion in 2023, a 30% increase from the previous year. After paying out bonuses, sports betting operators took in $11 billion, up from about $7.5 billion last year.
The American Gambling Association estimates that $2.7 billion will be wagered through legal sports betting on the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments this year.
“March Madness is the biggest individual event of the year for sports betting,” said David Forman, vice president of research for the American Gaming Association.
The Super Bowl also attracts a lot of betting, but it’s just a game between two NFL teams. The NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments feature 136 teams playing 134 games over three weeks.
Can you bet on your team?
Despite living in a place where sports betting is legal, some fans may still be prohibited from betting on their favorite teams and players.
About a dozen states prohibit betting on college games involving in-state teams. Four other states — Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Vermont — generally ban bets involving their state’s college teams, but make exceptions for championship games.
Some states only allow betting on the outcome of college games and not on the performance of specific players. Maryland and Ohio, for example, ban so-called proposition betting on college players, effective this month.
The NCAA is concerned that betting on specific players could lead to problems, including harassment of college athletes and stress on their mental health. The organization also said such bets could induce players to place bets for themselves or alter their play to influence statistics-based bets.
New betting status
Six states have introduced or expanded sports betting since UConn won the men’s championship last year.
Nebraska began accepting sports betting at casinos last June but does not allow mobile betting. Kentucky launched sports betting in September, coinciding with the start of the NFL season, and Maine began doing so in November.
After winning in court, the Seminole Tribe of Florida began accepting online sports betting in December in addition to betting at its casinos. A challenge is pending before the Florida Supreme Court, but betting continues. Opponents also asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case.
In January, Vermont launched online sports betting.
North Carolina, which had previously only allowed sports betting at three tribal casinos, will allow online gaming across the state starting March 11, one day before the start of the popular ACC men’s basketball tournament and one day after the women’s tournament. Sports Betting.
Odds in other states
Some states have an opportunity to jump on the sports betting trend.
In Missouri, where legislative attempts have repeatedly failed, the St. Louis Cardinals are leading a coalition of professional sports teams in backing an initiative petition that could put sports betting on the November ballot. Sportsbook operators DraftKings and FanDuel contributed a combined $3 million to the effort. Backers say they are on track to exceed the required number of signatures before the May 5 deadline.
Lawmakers in Alabama and Georgia are also considering constitutional amendments that would authorize sports betting. Georgia senators passed a measure last month, but it still needs a two-thirds vote in the House to appear on this year’s ballot.
The Alabama House included sports betting in a sweeping gambling measure, but the state Senate killed it earlier this month. The House must now decide whether to accept the change or negotiate a final version before voters.
Oklahoma and Minnesota are also awaiting legislation to legalize sports betting. A Minnesota Senate committee on Thursday approved a revised version that would increase the proposed tax rate.
Mississippi legalized casino sports betting in 2018 and is now considering expanding online gambling. The House passed a bill last month that is now in the state Senate.
Across state lines
Although sports betting remains illegal in more than a dozen states, some residents travel across state lines to bet. In Missouri’s two largest cities, St. Louis and Kansas City, some people drive to their nearest commute or to highway exit ramps across the Illinois or Kansas borders, respectively, to place legal bets through mobile apps.
Many other potential bettors are hampered by technology.
During Super Bowl weekend when the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers, tech company GeoComply Solutions said it processed more than 431,000 location checks from about 40,500 mobile devices in Missouri trying to access legal sportsbooks in other states. website. Position checks allow these bets to be blocked.
GeoComply said it conducted an additional 256,000 location checks for sports betting sites from 30,000 devices in Alabama, Georgia, Minnesota and Mississippi that weekend.
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