It is estimated that only 1-3% of sports gambling activities are accounted for in the Nevada Sports books and the majority of the gambling is the illegal gambling in sports. The FBI estimated in 1998 this illegal sports gambling was an industry worth billions of dollars.
Illegal gambling in sports consists of different types of activities. Many of these illegal bets on various sporting events are placed with sportsbooks or bookies. Online gambling is an extremely popular means of gambling. Other sports activities are those that happen to be illegal and associated with gambling like dog fighting and cockfighting.
Illegal gambling in sports continues to be associated with organized crime for a long time in America. In the 1920s and 1930s illegal sports gambling was a business for gang mobsters and they set up organized bookmaking around the nation. Emphasis was on horse racing during those times. Nevada legalized casino betting in 1931 and here too organized crime controlled a major percentage of casino gambling business. Continental Wire Service and Trans America Wire were the two illegal wire services which were operated by mobsters.
In the 1950s the government came down hard on organized crime and forced the mobsters out from the casino industry in Nevada. They were then bought out by corporations, and the mob took over the illegal bookmaking business. Most illegal books provide bookies which are illegal ways of spreading risks on wagers.
The action of transmitting wagering and gambling information and details across state lines for either taking or placing bets is recognized as illegal. News details concerning point spreads could be reported only for entertainment and informational purposes but many US newspapers still release betting lines. This practice is defended by the Newspaper Association of America as “free speech” under the First Amendment of the Constitution, claiming that readers only want to learn or find out about teams favored to be winners rather than for betting.
Some other illegal gambling in sports involves animal fights that occur in America regardless of the unsavory reputation it’s got. These staged fights include animals such as dogs that happen to be trained and bred for this purpose and male chickens. This sort of animal fighting is usually within the rural areas but city police reports on dog fighting and cockfighting have risen and this sport has become the rage among gangs on the street. This type of illegal sports betting activity is a great problem for the authorities because of the weapons and large quantities of hard cash present at the fights.
The issue of illegal gambling in sports is really a matter of grave concern. Minnesota laws make any type of wager or bet illegal. It’s advisable if the bettor finds out all of the laws relating to sports gambling in his state or area before placing bets on a sporting event. Many states declare sports betting as illegal in the United States excluding Nevada, Montana and one or two additional states.