It is estimated that only 1-3% of sports gambling activities are taken into account in the Nevada Sports books and the majority of the gambling is the illegal gambling in sports. The FBI estimated in 1998 that this illegal sports gambling was an industry worth billions of dollars.
Illegal gambling in sports includes different types of activities. Many of these illegal bets on different sporting events are placed with sportsbooks or bookies. Internet gambling is a very popular means of gambling. Other sporting events are those that are illegal and linked to gambling such as dog fighting and cockfighting.
Illegal gambling in sports has been 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 also set up organized bookmaking around the nation. Focus was on horse racing at that time. Nevada legalized casino betting in 1931 and here too organized crime managed 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 federal government came down hard on organized crime and forced the mobsters out of the casino industry in Nevada. These 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 may be reported only for entertainment and informational purposes but a majority of US newspapers still release betting lines. This practice is defended by way of the Newspaper Association of America as “free speech” under the First Amendment of the Constitution, proclaiming that readers just want to learn or read about teams favored to be winners instead of for betting.
Some other illegal gambling in sports involves animal fights that occur in the US regardless of the unsavory reputation it’s got. These staged fights involve animals like dogs that happen to be trained and bred for this purpose and male chickens. This sort of animal fighting is normally within the rural areas but city police reports on dog fighting and cockfighting have risen and this sport is the rage among gangs in the street. This kind of illegal sports betting activity is a great concern to the authorities because of the weapons and large amounts of hard cash present in the fights.
The matter of illegal gambling in sports is a question of grave concern. Minnesota laws make any sort of wager or bet illegal. It is best if the gambler finds out all of the laws relating to sports gambling within his state or area prior to placing bets on a sporting event. Most states declare sports gambling as illegal in the United States excluding Nevada, Montana and one or two other states.