Here’s How Major Sportsbooks Are Addressing The Issue Of Gambling Addiction

As sports betting becomes more common across the United States, there’s an increased concern about the likely rise in problem gambling. And to their credit, it appears that the biggest names in this emerging sector are forming a coalition to tackle the issue head-on.

Lucky number seven

According to reports, some heavy-hitters in the sportsbook world have promised to spend more than $20 million to fund the formation of the Responsible Online gaming Association. Sure, that’s a drop in the bucket compared to the amount of revenue gaming is bringing in these days, but ROGA Executive Director Jennifer Shatley heralded the move as a big first step in the right direction.

“I’m incredibly excited to move this forward and to do some impactful things and to really expand the knowledge through the research and to create these evidence-based best practices and to really empower players with information,” she said.

The seven entities involved in this undertaking (FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Penn Entertainment, Fanatics Betting & Gambling, Hard Rock Digital, and Bet365) make up a whopping 85%+ of the online gaming market.

Exploring ROGA’s mission

So what exactly is it that this new association will do? Essentially, organizers envision ROGA becoming a go-to source for education about the harms of problem gambling and how to participate in gaming responsibly. It will also fund marketing and advertising campaigns to get the message out.

Furthermore, ROGA plans to establish a database to share relevant information between its members as well as a program whereby those members will be held to certain standards for promoting responsible betting.

The initiative is coming amid a continuing spike in sports gambling. Nearly two-thirds of all states along with D.C. currently allow legal gambling and a whopping 15,000 bets were tallied every second during this year’s Super Bowl.

Chris Agee March 28th, 2024

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