Leagues could benefit from New York sports betting fee

New York could become the first state to regulate sports betting with a clause that would see a fee paid to professional sports leagues in the US.

States that have legalised sports betting in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling on PASPA have not included a fee as part of their regulations, despite calls from leagues to do so.

Leagues have said this so-called ‘integrity fee’ would be used to combat issues related to cheating.

However, Peter Moschetti, a gaming commissioner in New York, has said that lawmakers in the state are considering “all” components of a state senate bill introduced this year, according to the Reuters news agency.

Moschetti made the comment while speaking at an event in New York alongside John Bonacic, chairman of the New York Senate gaming committee, who earlier this year tabled the state senate bill.

The bill included plans for 0.25% of wagers to go directly to professional and college sports leagues, as well as an 8.5% state tax on gross revenue generated from sports wagering.
 
Dan Spillane, senior vice-president of the NBA basketball league, urged the gambling industry to view the leagues “as partners, not adversaries”.

Spillane added: “Without sports there is no sports betting.”

Although the majority of sports leagues have retained their stance on integrity fees, recent activity suggests the leagues are looking at alternative ways to gain profit from betting.

Last week, the NBA announced an official partnership with MGM in a deal worth a reported $25m (£19m/€22m).

In addition, Gary Bettman, commissioner of the NHL, said the ice hockey league could seek partnerships with gambling companies in order to take advantage of the expanding regulated sport betting market in the US.