My Football Facts ⇒ Articles

By Jonathan Lewis | 19th Jul 2022

The Pros and Cons of Legalizing Sports Betting

One of the many opinions of expert bettors has been driven toward the legalization of sports predictions. Many believe that proper regulation will be better than an outright ban.

Reasons Why Sports Betting Should Be Legalized

Despite the growing popularity of sports betting, many countries are still unbending toward the motion to legalize it. However, with the refusal of governments to legalize sports betting, sports fans worldwide frequent betting sites online and offline.

These sites are raking in millions of revenues that remain untaxed by government authorities, which is a great loss. Moreover, the lack of regulation and secrecy of sports betting promotes bribery because prediction companies don’t mind paying officials bribes to avoid being penalized.

Many things point to the fact that sports betting should have been legalized decades ago, and that is why many keep asking – is Parimatch legal in India?. Thankfully, some countries are making a move to legalize and regulate sports betting. Below are the top five reasons sports should be legalized, even if some are still rigidly against it.

Unlike Gambling, It Requires Real Skills

The argument of some is that sports predictions are gambling and that it depends on luck. Sports betting is indeed a form of gambling, but winning in sports predictions is a matter of skills rather than luck.

Professional sports bettors will tell you that luck has nothing to do with winning in betting. A good scenario to explain how sports betting is a game of skill is the introduction of Daily Fantasy sports (DFS).

Organizers of DFS introduced it to sports predictions fans almost a decade ago, having discovered a loophole in anti-gambling laws. DFS is a game of skill; it isn’t subject to anti-gambling laws, which gives it legal freedom of operation. Moreover, many ardent sports bettors take predictions as their real, professional job; it is their career and source of livelihood.

Governments Can Tax Sports Betting

Countries that haven’t legalized sports betting cannot tax the revenues predictions companies rake in – a huge loss for the economy. Meanwhile, betting companies bring in millions to billions of revenues every year, revenue that communities can benefit from.

However, since the government won’t legalize sports betting, they can’t tax sports betting companies’ revenue and are missing out. Once governments can legalize sports prediction organizations, they can tax the revenues and use them for community growth, among other things.

The inability to tax the huge revenue of sports prediction companies is one of the arguments concerning its legalization. However, profits that governments make from betting organizations can benefit the country’s economy in more ways than one.

Investment Opportunities

Sports betting companies are profitable sources of business and investment opportunities, which country economies can indirectly benefit from. Sports prediction companies usher in much money regularly, particularly when a huge sporting event like the Olympics or Premier League is happening.

Considering how much profits these sports prediction businesses make, only someone without a business mind wouldn’t be interested in entering the industry. Moreover, while many want to participate in sports, few can.

However, anyone can bet on sports, provided they learn the basic rules and follow tips for prediction and winning. If governments legalize sports betting, we will start seeing many sports prediction businesses. One way or another, the country’s economy benefits from the growing number of sports prediction businesses – it’s a win-win situation.

Legalizing Sports Betting Can Be the Solution to Game Fixing

One of the major arguments against legalizing sports prediction is that professionals and leagues are concerned about game-fixing. The illegal act of fixing games was very common in the 90s when athletes weren’t earning much.

However, athletes now make millions from a single match, so throwing a game wouldn’t make sense. College athletes, on the other hand, don’t get paid, and game-fixing is more prominent – all the more reason to legalize sports betting.

When government authorities legalize sports betting, prediction companies won’t be operating in the shadows. Instead, there will be more transparency in their operations, and the government will be able to monitor them closely. Legalizing sports betting may be the solution we’ve all been looking for in games.

Sports Betting Legalization Can Increase the Popularity of Sports

While sports fans enjoy watching games, they find it more exhilarating when they are betting for money. They have to take every move of every player in their chosen team, which makes watching the game more interesting.

Thanks to the potential benefits of sports betting, many more people will become invested in the sport. Thus, the sport will gain massive popularity in the country where it is played worldwide.

Several sports are already popular, even when sports prediction isn’t legalized. The popularity will skyrocket when governments and regulations become involved. The viewership will spike as players get more motivated to give their best, and fans will be more ready to watch and bet on games.

Conclusion

A prominent reason why government authorities should legalize sports prediction is the many benefits the country stands to gain. Legalizing sports betting will increase economic growth and make minor and major sports popular.

Sports peculiar to that country gained a massive following worldwide when the government legalized sports betting. Legalizing sports betting is a win for the government and the sports industry.

Jonathan Lewis is an MFF sports writer