Going “All In” after Murphy v. NCAA: An Approach for California to Legalize Sports Gambling

Authors

Kailey J. Walsh

Abstract

When people think of sports gambling, they think of Las Vegas. Until recently, Nevada was the only state where one could legally place bets on sporting events. However, since the recent Supreme Court decision, Murphy v. NCAA, states are now in control when it comes to deciding whether or not to legalize sports gambling. As a result of the Murphy v. NCAA decision, some states have started to pass legislation to allow its citizens to legally place bets on certain sporting events. The driving force to legalize sports gambling stems from states’ desires to increase revenue through the taxation of sports betting. By allowing people to legally place bets on sporting events, not only will casinos and other sportsbook operations generate a tremendous profit, but the state itself will also generate revenue from its ability to tax these casinos and sportsbook operators. States which are contemplating passing legislation legalizing sports gambling should, and have, looked to Nevada, or any of the other fifteen states who have since passed legislation legalizing sports gambling, to be their guide. Before the Murphy v. NCAA decision, Nevada was the only state profiting from legal sports betting. States who have legalized sports betting since Murphy v. NCAA, like New Jersey, have looked to Nevada as its model to set up sports gambling and other states are sure to follow. And why not? In one month, Nevada’s casinos raked in over $581 million dollars from sports gambling, a figure that could be instrumental in revitalizing and generating a tremendous amount of revenue for states. This type of revenue influx would especially help California, a state that currently faces an exorbitant amount of debt. When states like California realize that they could be able to generate that amount of revenue, they would be doing their citizens a disservice to not explore the opportunity further. With Nevada’s model as a guide, California should follow suit and legalize sports gambling.

Recommended Citation

Kailey J. Walsh, Going “All In” after Murphy v. NCAA: An Approach for California to Legalize Sports Gambling, 42 UC Law SF Comm. & Ent. L.J. 117 (2020).
Available at: https://repository.uclawsf.edu/hastings_comm_ent_law_journal/vol42/iss2/2