UMass Poll Shows Support For Legal Sports Betting

A recent poll conducted by UMass Amherst and WCVB reveals that a majority of respondents are in favor of legalizing sports gambling, while Massachusetts lawmakers are still engaged in discussions about a sports betting bill.

In the commonwealth, legal sports betting is either strongly supported or somewhat supported by forty-two percent of the surveyed individuals.

Sports betting is currently legal and operational in 30 states plus the District of Columbia. In another 5 states, although it is legal, the implementation of sports betting has not yet taken place. Unfortunately, attempts to legalize sports betting in Massachusetts have faced obstacles and have not progressed significantly over the years.

Legal sports betting is now closer to becoming a reality in the commonwealth than ever before. Both the state’s House and Senate have approved separate versions of a bill, and currently, six lawmakers (three from each chamber) are engaged in negotiations to reach a consensus on the final bill.

Legislators have until July 31st to pass a bill and submit it to Governor Charlie Baker, a staunch supporter of sports betting.

Survey says …

According to a UMass Amherst / WCVB poll, approximately 33% of respondents expressed no clear stance on legal sports betting. Around 23% indicated a mild level of support for it, while 19% showed strong support.

23% of people either somewhat or strongly opposed.

According to Jesse Rhodes, a political science professor at UMass Amherst and associate director of the poll, while only 20% of individuals would engage in sports gambling if it were legalized in the commonwealth, over 40% of residents are in favor of legalization, and an additional third hold mixed opinions. Rhodes noted that a mere 11% strongly oppose legalization. Based on these statistics, it appears likely that a majority might eventually support legalization, particularly if proponents launch a campaign.

What sports bets would you make?

According to the survey, Massachusetts bettors have shown a higher preference for the NFL, with a total of 26% of respondents expressing their intention to place a bet on this league if sports betting were legalized.

Of the respondents, 21% expressed their intention to definitely or probably bet on the NBA, while 20% indicated their likelihood to place a wager on Major League Baseball, and 18% on the NHL.

In the commonwealth, if college sports betting is permitted, 17% of individuals expressed their intention to wager on college basketball, while an additional 16% stated their inclination to bet on college football.

A total of 1,131 respondents were interviewed by YouGov during June 15-21. From this, a sample of 1,000 was selected to create the final dataset. The margin of error for this study is 3.5%.

What’s next?

On June 9, the Sports Wagering Conference Committee of the Massachusetts Legislature convened to initiate talks regarding a sports betting bill. Following a brief public session, the committee entered into an executive session to privately deliberate on the matter.

Since then, there have been no other public meetings that have taken place or been planned.

There are several noteworthy distinctions between the House and Senate bills.

• The House passes a bill to legalize betting on professional and college sports, while the Senate opposes the idea of allowing bets specifically on college sports.
• The Senate imposes a tax rate of 35% on online sports wagering and 20% on in-person betting, while the House recommends lower tax rates of 15% and 12.5% for each respective form of gambling.
• The Senate grants nine licenses for sports betting, allocated to each casino and six independent mobile operators. On the other hand, the House permits every casino to possess three skins, one for each of the three horse racetracks, and an unlimited number of untethered mobile licenses.
• During game broadcasts, the Senate prohibits TV advertising for sports betting.
• Credit card deposits are not permitted in the Senate.

The committee consists of state Senators Eric Lesser, Patrick O’Connor, and Michael Rodrigues, along with state Representatives Jared Parisella, Aaron Michlewitz, and David Muradian.