Caesars Sportsbook Gambling ads located outside a New York City building in 2024. Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Image
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Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images
More and more people are looking for something to help manage their gambling addiction. This is the discovery of a new study published on Jama Internal Medicine on Monday.
The study notes that a 2018 Supreme Court decision eased restrictions on online sports betting.
Before the 2018 Murphy V National College Athletic Association, only Nevada allowed bets on sports. In 2024, 38 states allowed it. Research shows that sports betting has grown from $4.9 billion in 2017 to more than $121 billion in 2023.
John Ayers, professor of data and behavioral science at the University of California, San Diego, says the idea for the study came to him after having a conversation while he was playing golf.
“One of the boys in the cart came to me and asked me to borrow money,” Ayers said.
When Ayers pushed him over why he needed cash, Ayers said the young man, “I’ve had a lot of bad breaks in my bet recently.”
I’m looking for help
Since 2018, to get the impact of a major expansion of online betting platforms, Ayers and his colleagues have seen internet search terms that indicate people are suffering from gambling addiction.
People have Google phrases like, “Are I obsessed with gambling?” “Please help find help with gambling addiction,” Ayers says.
“And these searches show that since the Supreme Court case legalized sportsbooks, it has increased by around 23% nationwide,” Ayers says.
Researchers were able to find that these types of search terms were increasing immediately after opening sports bets, and found that the impact was significantly greater than opening brick and mortar gambling facilities. Ayers says gambling addiction is a serious public health and mental health issue.
“Gambling disorders are a clinical diagnosis and we start looking at potential health effects and we see that there is a complete blind spot in this,” he says.
A study by the Illinois Department of Human Services showed that teens and young adults had the highest prevalence of online gaming.
From “The Shadows”
However, industry groups argue that it is not the case.
“It’s important to remember that the majority of gamblers enjoy gambling and all forms of casino games responsibly, including sports betting,” he said. says Joe Maloney, senior vice president of the American Gaming Association.
He argues that by legalizing online sports betting, it will allow its regulations and services that will help those struggling.
“As long as there are people who are demonstrating problematic behaviors now, this activity will be in the light, not in the shadows, and we will be able to provide services,” says Maloney.
