NBA Commissioner wants US sports betting

onal Basketball Association (NBA) Commissioner Adam Silver has called for legal sports betting in the US.

Sports wagering is currently outlawed in all but four states, although New Jersey is currently in a legal dispute with the four major professional sports leagues and the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) over its law.

New Jersey passed legislation allowing for casinos and racetracks in the state to offer such services in October, only for the leagues and NCAA to be granted a restraining order against the bill, with the case set to reconvene on 21 November.

The NBA has opposed the legalisation of sports betting for over two decades, believing it would leave the sport open to match-fixing and corruption.

However Silver writes in The New York Times: "Congress should adopt a federal framework that allows states to authorise betting on professional sports, subject to strict regulatory requirements and technological safeguards.

“Gambling has increasingly become a popular and accepted form of entertainment in the United States. Most states offer lotteries. Over half of them have legal casinos. Three have approved some form of internet gambling, with others poised to follow.”