Imagine walking into Mile High on a fall Sunday shortly after placing a legal bet just outside the stadium on the outcome of a Denver Broncos game. It’s a realistic possibility in the not-too-distant future.
The Supreme Court on Monday struck down a federal law that prohibits gambling on sports in a landmark 6-3 decision that allows individual states to form their own laws to regulate bets placed on games within professional and amateur athletics. Nevada was previously the only state where such wagers were legal, under the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992.
Sports leagues and lawmakers now face complex decisions for regulating an industry in which Americans illegally bet an estimated $150 billion each year, according to the American Gaming Association.
Several states have passed preemptive laws that provide framework for legalized sports gambling to take place almost immediately — including New Jersey (the state that filed the suit), Delaware, West Virginia, Mississippi, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, according to the Washington Post.
Colorado legislators did not take similar action, and with the state’s general assembly concluding its 2017-18 session last week, the state cannot change its gambling laws until at least 2019 when the General Assembly reconvenes. April 6 was the deadline for citizens seeking to circulate a ballot petition to schedule a hearing before the state’s title board to verify the language in their initiative, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
Colorado did not allow casino gambling until 1991, when the Limited Gaming Act was approved as an amendment to the state constitution. Voters have given gambling more leeway in the state since then. Amendment 50, passed in 2008, increased maximum bets, green-lighted some new games and allowed casinos to stay open 24 hours a day. But gambling is still tightly regulated.
The state permits gamblers to play poker, blackjack, roulette and craps and try their luck on slot machines, but only in the towns of Black Hawk, Central City and Cripple Creek. State statute expressly forbids gambling on the outcome of sporting events.
“Any expansion of gaming beyond the constitution would require legislation and a vote of the people,” said Meghan Tanis, a spokeswoman for the Colorado Division of Gaming.
The gaming division has reached out to Attorney General Cynthia Coffman’s office for guidance and to issue a formal opinion on the Supreme Court ruling, Tanis said. Coffman was not available for comment Monday.
“We’re going to have to look at it pretty closely,” Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper told KDVR-TV on Monday, saying he is concerned about gambling addiction. “We’ve got to figure out how people who want to gamble (on sports) can do it recreationally and how people who are vulnerable to that kind of addiction, how we protect them, if indeed that’s possible.”
Bruce Seymore, executive director of Mile High Racing and Entertainment, said he can’t predict how the state legislature would format legalized sports betting, but is hopeful change will go into effect as soon as next year. Seymore’s company owns Arapahoe Park, a live horse racing venue in Aurora. He said he would like to see the state allow for Las Vegas-style sports books where Colorado residents could place a variety of bets in-house or online through government-accredited organizations.
But the ruling arrives after years of heavy resistance from the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB and NCAA as cheating scandals related to gambling throughout sports history have often left deep scars. Commissioners from each league released statements Monday urging lawmakers to protect the integrity of their games when considering legalized sports gambling.
For the gaming industry, though, the proposed changes are expected to reduce illegal gambling activity.
“I think it will be a negative for the bookies of the world because they’re going to lose a lot of business,” Seymore said. “The positives are going to be dealing with people who are licensed by the state who are solid and have the financials to back-up payouts. … The devil is in the details and we haven’t seen any of that yet.”
How Colorado adapts is yet to be seen, but one thing remains clear: The state’s gaming industry is celebrating a major victory.
Troy Stremming, a spokesman for Pinnacle Entertainment, the parent company for Ameristar Blackhawk Casino, has been closely involved with various states across the United States on legislation that would allow for a smooth transition to legalized sports betting.
“From our industry’s perspective, it provides a great opportunity for us to touch a new group of guests that may not be familiar with the businesses that we operate today,” Stremming said. “They may not have an interest in slots or table games, but they follow their favorite sports team and have an interest in sports wagering. I think it creates new opportunities for us, particularly with the millennial group.”
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