Arkansans On Track to Wager Almost $1 Billion on Sports This Year

Gambling, ,

An analysis from Family Council shows Arkansans could wager almost a billion dollars on sports betting this year.

The figure does not take into account “prediction market” wagers on sports or illegal sports betting.

Nationwide, sports betting is legal in 39 states — including Arkansas — but a growing body of evidence shows this type of gambling is causing serious financial harm.

Last week, Family Council reported that data from the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration shows that from January 1 through July 31, sports bets totaled more than $529 million — an average of roughly $2.5 million per day.

At that rate, Arkansas is on track to wager as much as $912.5 million on sports by the end of December. Even if that daily average were cut in half this fall, Arkansas’ sports betting for the year would still top $700 million.

That estimate does not include “prediction markets” that exploit loopholes in federal law to bring casino-style gambling to anyone with a smartphone. We have written before about how the companies running “prediction markets” claim they just let people “invest” in the future outcome of a ballgame. But calling it an “investment” does not change what it is: It’s gambling.

Studies show people who gamble on sports may be twice as likely to suffer from gambling problems. When sports gambling happens online, the rate is even higher.

More than half of men ages 18-49 now have an active sportsbook account online, and the Institute for Family Studies (IFS) reports almost one in four young men say they gamble daily.

A study by Northwestern University found that for every dollar spent on sports betting, household investment falls by an average of $2.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Ethics and Public Policy Center, researchers at UCLA, and bankruptcy attorneys across the country all say sports betting is driving a wave of financial problems like credit card delinquencies and bankruptcies.

Sports betting is out of control. It’s corrupting sports, and it’s ruining lives.

Can Arkansas really afford to wager a billion dollars on sports every year?

As powerful corporations try to make gambling part of everyday life, it’s important for Arkansas to protect its citizens and families from predatory gambling. Otherwise, gambling addiction will simply continue wrecking lives and hurting families in our state.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Study Shows Staggering Number of Young Men Trapped in “Addiction Economy” of Gambling, Pornography

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Approximately one in eight men ages 18 to 29 use pornography, gamble, and play video games every single day, according to the Institute for Family Studies (IFS).

The IFS report released last month is based on a YouGov survey of 2,000 Gen Z men living in the United States.

In a statement online, sociology professor Brad Wilcox of the University of Virginia said the report shows, “We have a generation of young men trapped in the ‘addiction economy’—and the numbers are staggering.”

Wilcox pointed out that the data shows 11.9% of men in their late teens and twenties use pornography, gamble, and play video games — all three — every single day.

Almost one in four young men said they gambled daily. More than one in four (27%) reported using pornography daily.

But while large number of young men appear to be trapped in the “addiction economy,” Focus on the Family’s Daily Citizen points out that the news isn’t all bad for Gen Z:

“While some may look at the facts above and immediately conclude men are the primary source of society’s problems, there are heartening statistics about young men returning to church and prioritizing family life.

“Young men today are more likely to desire positive important life decisions – like going to church regularly, getting married and having children – than young women are.

“According to Gallup, more young men today (42%) say religion is “very important” to their lives than at any point in the last 25 years. Young men are now more likely than young women (29%) to say religion is “very important” to them.

“For the first time in American history, more men attend church than women – with the disparity especially pronounced among 20-somethings.

“In terms of marriage, IFS reports that 68% of unmarried young men want to get married someday, and 62% of childless young men aspire to be fathers.”

The Daily Citizen is right. We have written before about the “quiet revival” taking place among young adults in America and abroad.

Young adults — men and women alike — have driven Bible sales to record levels and are being baptized into the Christian faith. That’s good news.

But the IFS report’s findings are still deeply concerning. Millions of young adults are trapped by addiction — and in some cases, multimillion-dollar corporations are profiting from it. That should trouble everyone.

Arkansas has taken steps to protect young people from gambling and from internet pornography and other harmful material. Clearly more work still needs to be done.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Grant Funding Pushes for Better Research on Dangers of Sports Gambling

Gambling, ,

CNBC reports billionaires John and Laura Arnold are offering more than $2 million in research grants to universities to study the risks of online sports betting.

The grants will help researchers “look at the effect of gambling on financial well-being, household formation, mental health and consumer behavior.”

Thanks to internet gambling, placing a bet is now as easy as sending a text.

Researchers say more than half of men ages 18 – 49 now have an active sportsbook account online. Arkansans wagered a record $86.5 million in March alone this year.

But experts and policymakers are raising serious concerns about the impact this type of gambling may be having on our society.

A study published last month found gambling disorder diagnoses have risen more than 60% in states that legalized sports betting. Researchers said the largest increase in gambling disorders was found among young adults ages 18 – 29.

People who gamble on sports are at an increased risk of suffering from gambling problems. When sports betting happens online or on a smartphone, the rate is even higher.

Mobile sports betting apps use addictive technology to hook people — especially young adults. A recent report from mental health professionals at Baptist Health South Florida found that internet gambling platforms are engineered to keep people engaged, using instant rewards and near-misses to trigger the same brain chemistry as other addictions.

Bankruptcy attorneys across the country say online sports betting is driving a surge in personal bankruptcies — especially among young men in their 20s and 30s — and researchers at UCLA estimate that online sportsbooks are linked to an increase of roughly 30,000 more bankruptcies per year nationwide.

Experts are also sounding the alarm over “prediction markets” that they say are not regulated under state gambling laws, but are still just as addictive as other forms of online gambling.

Maybe all of this is part of the reason why polling now shows most Americans do not believe sports betting has been good for society or good for sports.

Arkansas families need to understand that sports betting isn’t harmless entertainment — it’s predatory, and it’s growing.

As powerful corporations try to make gambling part of everyday life, it’s important for Arkansas to protect its citizens and families from predatory gambling. Otherwise, gambling addiction will simply continue wrecking lives and hurting families in our state.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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