It’s been seven years since the US Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), thereby giving 49 states the right to follow Nevada in legalizing sports gambling. But for as pervasive as the industry has become across all media, sportsbooks are still banned in 21 states, including California and Texas, where a fifth of all Americans reside.
Enter event-based prediction markets — a new front in gambling’s nationwide turf war that’s giving all Americans, 18 and up, the chance to wager on sports over the objections of state regulators.
The emerging industry’s trading platforms work like online sportsbooks by offering futures contracts at prices and returns that fluctuate like betting odds (i.e. underdogs pay off better than favorites)
