Published: February 13, 2021

Texas Legislature Considering Legalized Sports Betting

Texas lawmakers are once again taking up the issue of whether Texas should have legalized sports gambling and there will be some pressure put on them by some sports owners within the state to make legalized sports gambling a reality.

The owners of the Dallas area sports teams, the Dallas Mavericks, the Texas Rangers, the Dallas Cowboys, FC Dallas and the Dallas Stars, want legalized sports gambling to come to the state as soon as possible.

For four years, Texas lawmakers have been debating whether they should allow daily sports fantasy games and now have added legalized sports gambling on the docket.

Texas features a legislative oddity as the state legislature meets every other odd numbered year which means the issue could be shelved for two years if nothing happens.

There are not many details available about what the lawmakers could consider other than bettors would have to be 21 or older to place a bet. It is unknown whether potential Texas bettors would be allowed to bet on college sports. At the moment, it appears the sports betting initiative has lukewarm support from the governor Greg Abbott.

There are now 25 states and the District of Columbia that plan or are offering some form of legalized sports gambling.

In May 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States gave the greenlight to sports gambling. Nevada got legalized sportsbooks in 1949. New York, New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia, Rhode Island, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Montana, Oregon, New Mexico, Arkansas, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Michigan, Colorado, Virginia and Tennessee now have various forms of sportsbooks. Politicians in Arizona, Connecticut, Kansas, Missouri, Maine, and Massachusetts are taking up the legalized sports gambling issue during the 2021 legislative session. Sports owners have embraced legalized sports gambling as it brings in a new source of revenue.

Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes-https://books.apple.com/us/author/evan-weiner/id595575191

https://sportstalkflorida.com/mlb/texas-legislature-considering-legalized-sports-betting/

 

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