Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

JOHN L. SMITH: Just a matter of time until legalized sports betting spreads to other states

Like characters from a dusty romance novel, the Barons of Sport at last appear almost ready to acknowledge the lineage and existence of its long-neglected stepchild, the lowly hunchback called Wager.

Wager doesn't live in a bell tower, but to the Barons he's as grotesque as any character created by Victor Hugo. Wager lives in Vegas, a leper colony for those of his kind, for only in Vegas can Wager exist as a legitimate citizen. If Wager haunts the night, it's probably to hang out at an ultra lounge, where chicks dig a hunchback with a bankroll.

For decades, the Barons of Sport have refused to claim Wager as a blood relation. They insist fans in their kingdom cheer for the home team out of a sense of loyalty, fidelity and athletic purity, not because they are acquainted with Wager.

It's corny, but true. Sports betting is the last taboo in American gambling. Only Nevada offers wide-open legalized sports betting, and at many mega-resorts the sports book is in place almost as much for customer convenience as for a profit center. Most book operators know their business is a grind with a few big weekends sprinkled in. But that hasn't stopped the forced exile of sports betting from the world of legalization outside Nevada.

Even Internet gambling, with its million pitfalls and next-to-impossible policing problem, has surged past sports betting in the race to gain national acceptance. While casino corporations have been investing millions in research and development of Web sites and federal laws, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has led a so-far unsuccessful assault on legalized college sports betting.

For a while it seemed sports betting couldn't catch a break.

But, lately, there are signs that the Barons of Sport are warming up to the stepchild. To do otherwise creates problems.

First, there's the perception-is-reality problem. Gambling is popular and has largely beat its stigma as a vice. Most people just don't care enough about gambling's downside to stop its spread.

Second, there's the reality-is-reality problem. With an estimated $50 billion wagered illegally each year, the Las Vegas guys look like choirboys.

The NBA's recent announcement that it was bringing the 2007 All-Star game to Las Vegas was a clear sign commissioner David Stern has a foot in reality.

The fact the Major League Baseball owners have decided to hold their annual winter meetings here is another fact that the times are changing and sports betting's stigma -- or at least Las Vegas' -- has improved.

More recently, the NCAA enlisted the assistance of Nevada sports book experts to gain a clearer understanding of gambling's association with so-called "amateur" athletics.

This is a smart move by the NCAA. It never has to embrace the philosophy of legalization, but it's dimwitted to make an enemy of Las Vegas, which keeps a precise pulse on the ebb and flow of action on almost every sporting event. Nevada bookmakers are among the first to notice when there's an unnatural movement of money on a game, and their quick responses have helped solve sports-fixing cases.

Not only has the image of gambling changed in popular culture, it's also changed inside police departments and the offices of the FBI. Cops and federal agents hate to enforce sports gambling laws unless there's an organized crime connection. In a nation in which 48 states offer a form of legalized gambling, and with cable TV extolling gambling nightly, it's more than a little hypocritical.

These days, you never hear of a league directive reminding players not to hit the tables in Vegas and Atlantic City too hard. In fact, Norm Clarke's column is filled with all-stars from all sports blowing their staggering paychecks in the casinos.

Only a few years ago, players with the gambling bug were grist for investigative reporters. Now they're good-time Charlies out for a little action.

One day, Las Vegas will have a big league team. One day, other states will have forms of legalized sports betting.

It may take a few more years, but the odds favor the last stepchild of American gambling returning from exile.

John L. Smith's column appears Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. E-mail him at Smith@reviewjournal.com or call 383-0295.