How Many People Are Betting on Sports & It’s Potential Impact in Florida
Bottom Line: Last Friday brought news that the 2021 federal ruling which invalidated the historic Seminole Compact signed by Governor DeSantis and the Seminole Tribe, had been overturned on appeal. The 3-0 panel decision has paved the path for the Seminole Tribe to relaunch sports betting in the state which briefly took place in the fall of 2021 prior to the initial judge’s decision. While many watch and wait across the state to see what may happen next as the Seminole Tribe could relaunch their sports betting app at any time, let’s look at how many people want to play and what the impact in Florida could end up being.
The odds are that even if you’re not a regular gambler, you’ve gambled at least at some point in your life. 85% of adults have gambled at least once in their lives. For the most causal of gamblers, playing the lottery is the most common way that people play. To that end, 60% of adults have gambled at least once within the past year and the most common way they’ve played is through a state lottery program. That said, the fastest growing form of gambling continues to be sports betting. That’s due to the industry still being relatively young as it’s only been five years since a Supreme Court ruling cleared the path for it across the country. Most recently 37 states, including Florida, and Washington D.C. have legalized sports betting. What we’ve seen is that many people are at least interested in playing.
Data from the Pew Research Center shows 19% of adults have bet on sports within the past year. And Nielsen research shows more than twice as many, 46%, are interested in sports betting. In Florida that translates to approximately 4.3 million people who’d likely participate in sports betting if they’re able with as many as 10.4 million who’d at least consider occasionally playing if they could. With numbers that large there’s no doubt the potential impact could be huge in Florida. The question is what happens next? Will the Seminole Tribe relaunch their sports betting app and operations? Will they wait for more legal clarity as the federal appellate court ruling is appealed and other state legal challenges are considered? We'll have to wait, watch and see. There’s no doubt that with football season just around the corner the timing couldn’t be better for those involved in sports betting and for those who’re interested in betting.