Nevada Mulls Over Proposed Sports Betting Changes

Nevada is a rich source of American gambling news, which is hardly surprising considering the state’s leading role as the (former) center of the global gaming industry.

The latest reports out of Carson City indicate that legislators are considering introducing significant modifications to the law regulating sports betting in the state. Nevada is currently one of only four states wherein American gambling laws allow sports betting to take place. Its industry is also the largest.

This is despite the fact that only individuals are allowed to bet in the state at this time. The proposed changes would mean that groups could form and place consolidated bets on behalf of private individuals.

These groups would pool punters’ money and wager on sports like American football, basketball, baseball and whatever else is currently allowed. Individuals would likely benefit from betting through such entities, since these groups would be able to provide the kind of in-house expertise, which most casual players do not possess.

It is yet unclear whether such groups could solicit the players’ “investments” via their websites, and if so, then how would that sit with the rules on internet betting in the US, though these entities would not act as sportsbooks, and individual investors would very likely be offered general sports betting portfolios to invest in, rather than specific matches to bet on.

At any rate, the details would have to be ironed out by the state’s gambling regulators anyway, once the law is passed.

Although some fears about the potential for money laundering have been raised, the potential revenue for Nevada is too huge to allow these concerns to undermine the proposal. Proponents estimate that sports betting tax revenues flowing into the Nevada budget would in fact double over the next five years.

Nevertheless, further debates and discussions are expected before legislators take further action on the proposal.