May 14, 2018 will forever go down in history as a landmark day for gambling legislation in the United States as the day the Supreme Court lifted its long-standing ban on sports betting. Since then, 12 US states have moved quickly to fully legalize sports betting at local level.
That includes Oregon, a long-time advocate for sports betting legalization. The Beaver State, as online-gambling.com states, was one of only four states that managed to remain exempt from 1992’s PASPA law that prohibited sports betting in various forms. As such, there wasn’t too much groundwork to lay down following the recent decision to repeal the sports betting ban at federal level.
Many casino brands have already stated their intention to delve further into the sports market, yet Chinook Winds Resort is the first to establish a sports betting lounge on their site over in Lincoln City. The very first bet was placed by Dallas Cowboys star Ed ‘Too Tall’ Jones at the end of August – a $5 wager on the Cowboys to win the Super Bowl!
Investment on the horizon
With the PASPA law no longer looming over casino business in Oregon, the state is now completely free to regulate and tax sports betting sites as they see fit. It’s likely that we’re going to see a massive influx of investment into the industry as both new and established casinos, bookmakers and fantasy sports operators look to carve out a large share of the market for themselves.
For instance, there are strong rumours that the team at Oregon Lottery are currently working on an intuitive sports betting app that’s scheduled to launch just in time for the start of the new football season. The latest forecast from Lottery estimates that this app will earn a net profit of $37 million on $1.6 billion in sports betting during the first three years after release.
We can even expect to see considerable interest from non-US sports betting giants, most of which have historically been wary of trying to enter a market governed by such strict legislation. The likes of William Hill and bet365 have already been touted to push the button on a big expansion over to the US the coming 12 months.
A boost for local teams
Oregon has a storied history across many different areas of the sporting world. Founded way back in 1964, it’s easy to forget that sportswear giant Nike still maintains its global headquarters in Washington County. Elsewhere in the state, Portland is home to three major league sports teams – the Trail Blazers (NBA), the Timbers (MLS) and the Thorns (WMLS) – all of which can expect to see a huge boost in the level of advertising investment that the sports betting industry will undoubtedly create.
That said, given the existing popularity of the Trail Blazers as the state’s most popular sports team, you could argue that this is even bigger news for the state’s soccer community. The Timbers have quickly built a very loyal fanbase, though the ability to bet on all their games throughout the season is bound to encourage more people to take an interest in the sport.
We should even see a sizeable knock-on effect for local collegiate teams, namely University of Oregon and Oregon State, in varsity strengths such as football and track and field. Again, there’s no doubt that the extra interest created by sports betting action will prove an incentive for people to get behind their local teams.
What does this mean for the Oregon economy?
As one of the early adopters of sports betting legalization, you’d have to say that the state has put itself head and shoulders ahead of many other regions of the country in terms of attracting new business, investment and gaming tourists.
More investment in the industry naturally means the creation of more jobs at many different organisational levels. From casino staff to online web developers, hundreds if not thousands of new roles will be created as a result of the decision to fully repeal the PAPSA legislation. It’s certainly an exciting time for local businesses and the wider community throughout the state.
It remains to be seen how the landscape of established casinos and bookmakers will develop over the coming years, though we can certainly expect to see plenty of movement across the board as the industry grows. This is just the beginning!
