Joe Asher was at the forefront of the nationwide expansion of sports betting long before the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed New Jersey’s challenge to the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act five years ago.
Now the president of sports betting for International Game Technology, Asher has a long history of running Nevada sports betting operations, including past stints as the CEO of William Hill U.S. and helping Cantor Fitzgerald lobby for a change in state laws to launch the first mobile sports betting devices.
Prior to his gaming career, Asher was an attorney. As one of a handful of gaming and sports betting leaders advocating for the activity’s nationwide legalization in 2017, ahead of the Supreme Court ruling, he was in the courtroom watching the justices quiz the attorneys for New Jersey and professional leagues.
After the hearing, he had lunch in Washington, D.C., with two other lawyers, former solicitor general Ted Olson who argued the case on behalf of New Jersey and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
They surmised correctly that the Supreme Court would ultimately legalize sports betting. After watching the arguments, Asher said the lunch “had a very-much celebratory feeling, for sure.”
