In the two decades before Ohio legalized sports betting — before phones became bookies and couches became casinos, before lawmakers counted revenue instead of counting the cost, before Emmanuel Clase bounced pitches and gamblers bounced checks — a recovering gambling addict named Rob Walgate spent years in committee rooms warning lawmakers what was coming.
They did it anyway.
More than three years after Ohio launched legal sports betting, the returns are easy to measure. So are the costs. Billions of dollars have flowed through mobile apps, fueling tax revenue and industry growth. At the same time, calls to problem gambling hotlines have climbed, betting-related debt has increased and some lawmakers are now trying to put new limits on an industry that has already taken hold.
