Worldwide

On May 14, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling that effectively rewired the modern American sports-betting economy. In Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, the Court struck down key provisions of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA)—the 1992 federal law that had largely confined legal single-game sports betting to Nevada.

What followed was not just “sports betting becomes legal.” It was a rapid shift to state-by-state legalization, a mobile-first betting boom, and a new revenue stream for states—alongside new integrity questions, advertising debates, and competition from adjacent “prediction market” products.

What PASPA did, and why New Jersey fought it

PASPA didn’t directly criminalize betting nationwide. Instead, it prevented states from authorizing sports gambling schemes. New Jersey’s effort to legalize sports betting—built around Atlantic City casinos and racetracks—ran into PASPA’s ban, triggering a multi-year legal fight that made its way to the Supreme Court.

The constitutional issue that mattered most was “anti-commandeering.” The Court held that Congress can’t commandeer state legislatures by telling them what laws they must keep on the books. PASPA’s core restriction—telling states they couldn’t authorize sports betting—violated that principle, so it fell.

That legal logic is why the ruling didn’t instantly create a single national market. It returned power to the states, and the American sports-betting landscape became a patchwork of different tax rates, different allowable bet types, and different licensing models.

The post-2018 gold rush: how sports betting spread

Within months, states began launching sportsbooks. The rollout pattern was consistent:

1. Retail first (casino sportsbooks and kiosks)
2. Mobile second (the true growth engine)
3. Market consolidation (a few national apps dominating share)

By the mid-2020s, legal sports betting had expanded dramatically. Multiple industry trackers note that as of August 2025, sports betting was legal in 38 states plus Washington, D.C. (and Puerto Rico in some tallies).

That expansion matters because—historically—sports betting was a niche product in U.S. gambling. After 2018, it became a mainstream consumer app category.

The real inflection point was mobile

If you want a single reason the market exploded, it’s this: betting moved from a destination (casino) to a phone. Mobile access increased frequency (more betting sessions), broadened participation (casual fans), and enabled modern products like in-play wagering, same-game parlays, and deeper prop menus.

That “mobile effect” also changed who benefited. States with statewide mobile betting and large populations (New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Ohio) quickly became the biggest handle markets, while retail-only models generally lagged.

Market growth: from a Nevada-centric industry to a national one

The scale of legal sports betting today is best understood through handle (total wagered) and revenue (sportsbook hold).

2024: the first “mature market” year at national scale

A state-by-state compilation of 2024 results shows total legal handle of about $149.5 billion, with sportsbook revenue around $14.23 billion and sports-betting taxes about $2.90 billion.

2025: A new record

In 2025, the American Gaming Association reported Americans legally wagered $166.94 billion on sports (an 11% increase from 2024), producing a record $16.96 billion in sportsbook revenue.

That same reporting also points to rising tax contributions tied to the category, with some summaries pegging sports-betting-related tax revenue around $3.71 billion in 2025.

These numbers underline the true outcome of Murphy: sports betting didn’t just become “legal” in more places—it became a material line item in state revenue discussions and a major digital entertainment product.

The broader economic ripple: jobs, taxes, and the online mix

Sports betting’s growth is part of a larger online-gaming shift. The American Gaming Association’s revenue tracker highlights how much commercial gaming revenue now comes from online segments, noting online gaming’s share of commercial gaming revenue has risen meaningfully in recent years.

As states by online gambling portal GamblingNerd.com, in 2025, AGA figures show total commercial gaming revenue (across casinos, sports betting, and iGaming where legal) reached $78.72 billion, while gaming taxes reached about $18.09 billion nationally.

That is the larger “Murphy effect”: a more integrated U.S. gambling economy, with sports betting as a gateway product that brings users into regulated ecosystems.

What changed for bettors: product innovation and price competition

The competitive battle after 2018 wasn’t only “who gets licensed.” It was also about product design.

Sportsbooks invested in:

● In-play betting interfaces (speed matters)
● Same-game parlays (high engagement, high hold potential)
● Player props (especially NFL-driven volume)
● Personalization (recommendation-driven bet menus)

For readers who want to understand these mechanics—like how hold works, why pricing differs by state, or why certain prop markets disappear in some jurisdictions—sites such as GamblingNerd.com can be helpful as an explainer layer alongside the raw state reports and AGA totals.

Integrity and “inside information”: a persistent concern

The Murphy era also created new integrity questions: athlete harassment around prop bets, attempted match manipulation, and the challenge of monitoring a national market with many state frameworks.

A recent example comes from Missouri’s post-launch debate over whether to ban prop bets on individual college athletes, prompted by gambling scandals and NCAA concerns. Missouri’s gaming commission declined to impose a ban immediately after launch, highlighting how states continue to iterate rules after legalization.

The more sports betting scales, the more regulators, leagues, and operators have to balance market demand with integrity risk—especially in college sports, where player compensation and vulnerabilities create additional pressure points.

Where the market goes next: forecasts through 2028–2030

Forecasts vary depending on what analysts count (operator revenue vs. handle, sports betting alone vs. “online gambling” totals). Still, the direction is clear: growth is expected to continue, driven by additional state launches and deeper mobile engagement.

● Grand View Research estimates the U.S. sports betting market size at $17.94 billion in 2024, projecting about 10.9% CAGR from 2025 to 2030.

● Vixio/GamblingCompliance forecasts online sports betting revenue (after certain deductions, depending on methodology) reaching roughly $18.6 billion to $21.7 billion by 2028 under its scenarios.

Images and text copyright © 2026. Content supplied by an external professional marketing service. The History Files accepts no responsibility for any external links on this page.