Tuesday, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against New Jersey’s repeal of Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). Adopted in 1992, PASPA bans state-sponsored betting on sporting events except in those states where such betting was legal. Currently, four states (Nevada, Delaware, Oregon and Montana) allow some form of sports betting.

As reported by ESPN, the AGA encourages deeper examination about the best path forward on this issue. Given that Americans are betting at least $140 billion on sports illegally each year, it’s clear that the current law is not achieving its intended result.

Further, the AGA established a member-led Sports Betting Task Force, held a number of meetings and commissioned research to study sports betting and fantasy sports. Additionally, AGA staff has been speaking with sports leagues, attending fantasy and sports betting conferences and continuing dialogue within the casino gaming industry to inform a unified perspective, which we will share later this year.

Through these efforts and ongoing engagement with gaming regulators, we will assess how this outcome and our ongoing understanding of the broader sports betting issue intersect with our industry’s ability to develop innovative ways to provide “Next Generation” gaming products and experiences that keep pace with consumer demand.

As always, I welcome your thoughts and feedback – and will keep you informed as this issue develops..