Illegal betting in sports
It’s estimated that only 1-3% of sports betting activities are accounted for from the Nevada Sports books and quite a few of the betting is definitely the illegal gambling in sports. The FBI estimated in 1998 that this illegal sports gambling was a business worth billions of dollars.
Illegal gambling in sports consists of different types of activities. Many of these illegal bets on different sporting events are placed with sportsbooks or bookies. Internet gambling is an extremely popular means of gambling. Other sports activities are those that happen to be illegal and linked to gambling such as dog fighting and cockfighting.
Illegal gambling in sports continues to be associated with organized crime for a long time in the US. In the 1920s and 1930s illegal sports gambling had been a business for gang mobsters and they also established organized bookmaking across the nation. Focus was on horse racing during those times. Nevada legalized casino betting in 1931 and here too organized crime managed a major percentage of casino gambling business. Continental Wire Service and Trans America Wire were the two illegal wire services which were operated by mobsters.
In the 1950s the federal government came down hard on organized crime and forced the mobsters out from the casino industry in Nevada. They were then taken over by corporations, and also the mob took over the illegal bookmaking business. Most illegal books provide bookies that are illegal methods for spreading risks on wagers.
The act of transmitting wagering and gambling information and details across state lines for either taking or placing bets is recognized as illegal. News details regarding point spreads could be reported just for entertainment and informational purposes but many US newspapers still release betting lines. This practice is defended by the Newspaper Association of America as “free speech” under the First Amendment of the Constitution, proclaiming that readers only want to learn or find out about teams favored to be winners instead of for betting.
Other illegal gambling in sports involves animal fights that occur in America regardless of the unsavory reputation it has. These staged fights include animals like dogs that happen to be trained and bred for this specific purpose and male chickens. This sort of animal fighting is usually in the rural areas but city police reports on dog fighting and cockfighting have increased and this sport has become the rage among gangs in the street. This type of illegal sports betting activity is a great concern to the authorities because of the weapons and large amounts of hard cash present in the fights.
The matter of illegal gambling in sports is a question of grave concern. Minnesota laws make any sort of wager or bet illegal. It’s advisable if the gambler learns all the laws relating to sports gambling within his state or area prior to placing bets over a sporting event. Most states declare sports gambling as illegal in the US except for Nevada, Montana and one or two other states.