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Former NBA commissioner: Time has come for legal sports betting
OCTOBER 1, 2015, 6:26 PM LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2015, 7:52 PM
BY JOHN BRENNAN
STAFF WRITER | THE RECORD
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NEW YORK — Former NBA Commissioner David Stern said Thursday that it is time for sports betting to be legalized in the United States, as his successor, Adam Silver, has suggested.
“I’m with Commissioner Silver,” Stern told an audience at a forum in midtown Manhattan on the future of sports and digital media. “There should be federal legislation that says, ‘Let’s go all the way’ and have betting on sports. It’s OK. It’s going to be properly regulated.”
In an interview after his discussion, Stern — a 1959 graduate of Teaneck High School — said he continued to oppose New Jersey’s efforts to give the state’s racetracks and Atlantic City’s casinos the option of operating Las Vegas-style sports betting books. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is weighing whether to review its 2-1 ruling in August that backed the claims of five sports organizations — including the NFL and the NBA — that such gambling is banned under a 1992 federal law.
Related: NFL, other leagues urge court not to take up N.J. sports betting appeal
“The only thing that makes sense for professional sports is to have federal legislation and regulation,” said Stern, who served as NBA commissioner from 1984 to 2014. “If it’s subject to 50 individual states, you have every state representative who thinks he has a perfect idea — that’s problematic.”
Casinos, horse racing tracks, jai alai, and lotteries are among the gambling options that are regulated by states. But Stern said there is a good reason for sports leagues to have federal oversight.
“Pro sports leagues, by their very constitutions, are national entities that are more easily regulated by one body,” Stern said. “And I think that gives a way for states to make more money, for leagues to be compensated for their intellectual property, and for the federal government to take [away] illegally bet money and put it through the federal coffers.”
Related: Court asks sports leagues for response in appeal in N.J. sports betting case
Should New Jersey prevail in court, Stern said that would “open up a real can of worms.”
The only “hidden value” to that scenario, Stern added, is that he believes it could quickly spur federal legislation to address the issue.
“But I hope that doesn’t happen,” said Stern, who sidestepped questions about whether daily fantasy sports — where fans can risk thousands of dollars a day choosing a group of players from various teams in a given sport — should be considered a form of gambling. The NBA last year announced a four-year agreement with FanDuel, which offers one-day fantasy games on the NBA’s website. Other leagues, including the NFL, also have partnerships with daily fantasy sports companies, as do league franchises and some individual players.
In 2012, Stern gave a deposition in the leagues’ sports betting lawsuit against the state. In that deposition, he said that the state’s efforts to legalize sports betting were “ham-handed,” adding that such legalization would “cause people to bet their grocery money on gambling.”
http://www.northjersey.com/news/form...ting-1.1423270
OCTOBER 1, 2015, 6:26 PM LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2015, 7:52 PM
BY JOHN BRENNAN
STAFF WRITER | THE RECORD
NEW YORK — Former NBA Commissioner David Stern said Thursday that it is time for sports betting to be legalized in the United States, as his successor, Adam Silver, has suggested.
“I’m with Commissioner Silver,” Stern told an audience at a forum in midtown Manhattan on the future of sports and digital media. “There should be federal legislation that says, ‘Let’s go all the way’ and have betting on sports. It’s OK. It’s going to be properly regulated.”
In an interview after his discussion, Stern — a 1959 graduate of Teaneck High School — said he continued to oppose New Jersey’s efforts to give the state’s racetracks and Atlantic City’s casinos the option of operating Las Vegas-style sports betting books. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is weighing whether to review its 2-1 ruling in August that backed the claims of five sports organizations — including the NFL and the NBA — that such gambling is banned under a 1992 federal law.
Related: NFL, other leagues urge court not to take up N.J. sports betting appeal
“The only thing that makes sense for professional sports is to have federal legislation and regulation,” said Stern, who served as NBA commissioner from 1984 to 2014. “If it’s subject to 50 individual states, you have every state representative who thinks he has a perfect idea — that’s problematic.”
Casinos, horse racing tracks, jai alai, and lotteries are among the gambling options that are regulated by states. But Stern said there is a good reason for sports leagues to have federal oversight.
“Pro sports leagues, by their very constitutions, are national entities that are more easily regulated by one body,” Stern said. “And I think that gives a way for states to make more money, for leagues to be compensated for their intellectual property, and for the federal government to take [away] illegally bet money and put it through the federal coffers.”
Related: Court asks sports leagues for response in appeal in N.J. sports betting case
Should New Jersey prevail in court, Stern said that would “open up a real can of worms.”
The only “hidden value” to that scenario, Stern added, is that he believes it could quickly spur federal legislation to address the issue.
“But I hope that doesn’t happen,” said Stern, who sidestepped questions about whether daily fantasy sports — where fans can risk thousands of dollars a day choosing a group of players from various teams in a given sport — should be considered a form of gambling. The NBA last year announced a four-year agreement with FanDuel, which offers one-day fantasy games on the NBA’s website. Other leagues, including the NFL, also have partnerships with daily fantasy sports companies, as do league franchises and some individual players.
In 2012, Stern gave a deposition in the leagues’ sports betting lawsuit against the state. In that deposition, he said that the state’s efforts to legalize sports betting were “ham-handed,” adding that such legalization would “cause people to bet their grocery money on gambling.”
http://www.northjersey.com/news/form...ting-1.1423270