Is Sports Betting Legal Now? Understanding Murphy v. NCAA

The Supreme Court of the United States decided Murphy v. NCAA today, and the headlines suggest that the opinion has rendered sports betting legal nationwide. The reality is a little more complicated than that. Murphy. To understand Murphy, one must understand the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PAPSA), 28 U.S.C. § 3701 et seq. PAPSA was enacted in 1992. It provides in part that no state may “sponsor, operate, advertise, promote, license, or authorize . . . a . . . betting, gambling, or wagering scheme based, directly or indirectly . . . on one or more competitive games in which amateur or professional athletes participate.” 28 U.S.C. § 3702. In other words, while it is not a federal crime to bet on sports, it is unlawful for a state to “authorize” sports betting. And if a state does so anyhow, the federal government or certain sports associations may seek an injunction. 28 U.S.C. § 3702. The law was drafted to exclude states in which sports betting was already allowed, such as Nevada. See 28 U.S.C. § 3704. Since PAPSA was adopted, several states have decided that they would like to allow sports betting, in part because taxing sports betting is a potential source of revenue. One of those states is New Jersey. Murphy is, in essence, a lawsuit by New Jersey challenging the constitutionality of PAPSA. New Jersey’s argument is that while perhaps the federal government could regulate or prohibit sports gambling directly, it can’t tell the states [...]