Sports Betting Legality Issues

Sports Betting Legality  is still a matter open for discussion. This is a true vexed problem.  Is it a state or a country that sets regulation? Earlier it was states but now the US senate wants to put some common laws concerning gambling and sports betting legality. Sports betting online can be prohibited in most countries. This is difficult to state clearly is it legal to gamble online or not? Laws need up-dating  and a number of sites dealing with online gambling exceeds all the previous levels. So what is about online sports betting legality in the US? There are shared beliefs that it's prohibited when a site and a server is located in the US. Otherwise it's another jurisdiction. That's why most US players just enjoy foreign sports betting. To tell the truth it makes little difference whether it's foreign or local, because all the bookmarking offices deal with world matches and competitions. Do players who have no right for sports betting online get punished? In fact it's always a site owner who will be charged and can be  called to the bar.

Statistics show that seven out of ten males go in for sports betting. The piece and sports betting news impress, don't they? That many players involved can result in such a huge revenue and it will lead to more taxes and local budget income increase. Can you imagine how much is received due to sports betting legality in Nevada? Too many zeros to keep them in one head. But online sports gambling is by five times increased, and black market sports betting is even more dazzling: just think it's thirty times bigger! And they still manage to buck the system... In June 2007 there were two acts came into effect. The former is about legalization of online gambling. But not all the games will cross this boundary. It's only games of skill. At the same time tax were levied on the companies that run online gambling. This can be a good solution of the financial problem regarding filling the economical gap. There are three states that prohibit their residents to gamble outside the territory, keep  money at home. 

The position in the UK

The UK's position is set out in the (reasonably) recently enacted Gambling Act 2005, the operative provisions of which came into effect on September 2007.  The new Act provides a single, all encompassing piece of law to cover all forms of gambling in the United Kingdom (besides the National Lottery and Spread Betting), and supersedes the now defunct Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Act 1963, the Gaming Act 1968 and the Lotteries and Amusements Act 1976.

Key provisions of the Act relevant to internet gambling (termed "Remote Gambling" in the Act), including casinos, sports betting, poker rooms and any other form of real money wagering online or via mobile telephony devices are listed below:

• British-based online gaming sites will be governed by the UK Gambling Commission (new authority set up to monitor all operators covered by the Act;

• Any operator of a Remote gambling service who has any piece of Remote Gambling Equipment (eg servers) located in the UK must obtain a license from the UK Gambling Commission;

• Operators of Remote gambling services from outside the UK, are free to offer their product to UK residents, provided they are complying with the licensing requirements of the jurisdiction in which the service is hosted;

• Nothing in the Act makes it illegal, or seeks to prevent, British residents gambling on the internet in their own homes;

• Remote gambling operators from EEA (European Economic Area) countries and Gibraltar can advertise within Great Britain. In addition, operators from within jurisdictions granted white listing status can also advertise within the UK;

The position in the rest of the EU

All EU Member States are are bound to observe the provisions set out in the European Communities Treaty.  Key among these is the four freedoms principle, one of which is the freedom to provide services - set out in Article 49 of the EC Treaty. In essence this Article makes it illegal for a Member State to legislate to prohibit residents from accessing a service provided by operators from other Member State, where that same service is able to be provided by local operators.  The law was formulated to foster free trade between Member States and to discourage restrictive trade practices and the protection of locally licensed monopoly operators. The European Commission has rules that the freedom to provide services provision applies to online gambling services as it does all others.  As a result, any Member State with locally licensed online gambling operations (eg state lottery etc) cannot legislate to try to block foreign providers of the same service.  Such legislation will be legally unenforceable and will also attract infringement proceedings from the EC. As at April 2009, 10 Member States, including France and Germany have been the subject of EC infringement proceedings.  The French Government have since announced plans in March 2009 to enact proposed laws that will regulate and tax internet gambling.  The laws new laws are planned to come into effect early 2010.

The position in the US...

Up until reasonably recently, regulation of gambling in the United States was left exclusively to the State Legislatures, who determined the legality or otherwise of gambling activities within their jurisdiction.  Some states have legalized many forms of gambling, while others have legislated to make it illegal to participate in any form of gambling other then the states lottery.  Nevada is the obvious example of a State which has embraced gambling as a legal form of commerce, while Utah is noted for its strong anti-gambling stance, and laws deeming all forms of gambling within its jurisdiction illegal. US State gambling laws were all drafted long before the advent of the Internet, and they do not have provisions dealing specifically with online gambling.

US Federal Gambling Laws - Pre September 30 2006

Specific online gambling legislation  

Existing Federal Laws

Federal laws relating to gambling were passed by Congress more recently (than State laws) to deal with inconsistencies in State based gambling laws, especially as they applied to interstate commerce.  Until 2006, US federal laws applying gambling activities were all drafted before the advent of Internet gambling.  There are a number of current federal laws that have indirect application to online gambling.  These are discussed below.