Sports Betting in Oregon to Move Forward
“Overall we see sports betting as an opportunity to increase our player base and sustainably grow our revenue.”
This is the position of one Matt Shelby, public information manager for the Oregon Lottery, which would oversee all facets of legalized sports betting in that state. He spoke with Legal Sports Report this week.
If anything were to occur, sports betting could be legalized at some point during the 2019 College Football season and quite possibly before the start of the 2019-20 College Basketball season with the Ducks likely to be among the favorites to win the Championship (they are at 25-1 odds heading into the 2018-19 season).
Oregon doesn’t have a fiscal framework for taxing sports betting at the moment, however. And the lottery is not going to move ahead without consulting the legislature, LSR notes.
Legalized sports betting in Oregon would likely be offered on a limited basis and there are no guarantees that the Lottery or legislature would go along with wagering on College sports.
Oregon was one of a handful of states exempt from previous sports betting prohibition, however, the Lottery offered a bare bones product that failed to catch on with residents.
- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com
