Betting online gives Tennessee and Gov. Lee best chance to win
Game on. Rather, bet on. That’s right, word came earlier this week that Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee stated that he will allow online sports betting legislation to become law without his signature. He did not support the idea during his campaign, and his Tennessee two-step now that public support is clear makes sense. It has to make all of us wonder what exactly ol’ Billy truly is passionate about. Agricultural enhancements is too easy, right? Could he follow Georgia’s recent decision to support Confederate monuments? Will he get neck deep into abortion discussions? All of those are hotbutton issues in the social media and political realm. Hey, he could always voice his support for Jeremy Pruitt and the Vols. That will play well.
That said, if you want to call Lee’s decision to step aside on the online sports betting bill weak-kneed, you can. Looking at the one-sided votes on this issue at every step, Lee’s lack of approval and lack of veto could also be just smart or simply changing his mind. I have long supported legalized sports wagering, but I thought the brickand-mortar establishments — kiosks, sports bars, even professional arenas and stadiums — were the path. I, too, have changed my mind, and truth be told, the Tennessee laws are ahead of the curve in this matter. According to Axios Sports, of the eight states that have already legalized and started accepting sports bets, only two states are meeting or exceeding expectations. The others have fallen short, in large part because
of the lack of an online component. Delaware, which has had a football-betting operation for the last decade, has met its expectations because of the familiarity with how it all works. New Jersey has far exceeded expectations. Yes, it is close to New York City and several other populated cities, but New Jersey, which has booked more than $2 billion in sports bets in 10 months, is the only one of the eight states that has legalized online sports betting. Sometimes it’s just that simple, right? Look at every business endeavor everywhere. Online is the on spot these days. The in-home sports experience is taking fans from stadiums. Kudos to the Tennessee legislators who realized the in-home sports betting experience would face the same hurdle.
The dollars are eyepopping. Here’s more from the TFP’s Andy Sher: “Tennessee Education Lottery officials would be in charge of implementing and overseeing the program, which would impose a 20% privilege tax on online gambling, estimated to bring in $41 million for the lottery, $7.6 million for local governments, and $2.5 million for the Department of Mental Health to fund gamblingaddiction programs.” Lee opposed the original bills because of, in part, their being against the brick-andmortar facilities. Maybe he was opposed to those in general or in principle. But numbers show that — and the strong showing of online betting by comparison — yet again that being willing to discuss new ideas is old-school wise.