It’s been one year since the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), the failed federal ban on sports betting.

At the American Gaming Association (AGA), we’ve made it a priority to understand how the expansion of legal markets affects consumers, operators, governments, leagues and other stakeholders.

Check out the one pagers on the right of this page for AGA’s top research on sports betting and an infographic showing all of the progress from the past year.

WASHINGTON – The American Gaming Association (AGA) today launched AGA Elevate, a new education program focused on providing value to the gaming-entertainment industry, and opened registration for AGA Elevate’s inaugural event, AGA Elevate | Lead ­– Adapt to Win.

The first AGA Elevate event will take place on Monday, August 13, 2018, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Las Vegas, and will focus on leadership development. Led by author, consultant and executive coach Dr. Mary C. Kelly, the event will help attendees better foster adaptive capacity to improve business efficiency and profits.

AGA Elevate follows the fourth pillar of AGA’s 2020 Strategic Plan, which aims to leverage the power of the industry to build member value beyond advocacy. The innovative education program will offer face-to-face and virtual opportunities to engage in critical business topics:

• Grow: Emerging trends, business growth and development and new or potential market expansion opportunities for the industry;
• Innovate: Opportunities to maximize operations through technology;
• Lead: Essential leadership and professional skills; and
• Respond: Crisis management and emergency preparedness.

“AGA Elevate is a first-of-its-kind program that will address current industry trends while raising the profile on issues that impact the future of the gaming industry, including human rights, robotics, emotional intelligence and payments solutions,” said Allie Barth, vice president of industry relations of AGA.

For more information about AGA Elevate | Lead – Adapt to Win, click here.

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About AGA: The American Gaming Association is the premier national trade group representing the $261 billion U.S. casino industry, which supports 1.8 million jobs in 40 states. AGA members include commercial and Tribal casino operators, suppliers and other entities affiliated with the gaming industry. It is the mission of the AGA to achieve sound policies and regulations consistent with casino gaming’s modern appeal and vast economic contributions.

Global Gaming Expo (G2E) is back to reunite the industry. As the premier event for commercial and tribal gaming professionals, G2E will help you make meaningful connections, discover cutting-edge technology, and experience innovative content. Whether in-person or virtually, you’ll want to be part of the G2E experience.

AGA Member Benefits

As a member of the American Gaming Association, you receive exclusive G2E benefits. Make sure to take advantage of these benefits and experience all that G2E 2021 has to offer.

Not sure you’re a member? Review the current AGA member list here. To access AGA member benefits, make sure to use your work email when registering.

Health and Safety

Your health and safety is our top priority. To support a productive and safe show, G2E 2021 will require proof of a COVID-19 vaccination and face coverings. Review our full health and safety guidance to learn more about how we’re preparing a safe on-site experience.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Americans’ positive view of the gaming industry continues to grow as the U.S. legal market expands. New research from the American Gaming Association (AGA) shows that two-thirds of adults view the industry as a positive economic contributor that provides high-quality jobs and 73 percent support legalized sports betting in their state.

Americans also see gaming as a good community partner. Nearly 7 in 10 Americans believe the gaming industry behaves responsibly and a majority (57%) believe the industry gives back in the communities where it operates. View the full findings of AGA’s annual survey of American attitudes here.

“We are a committed, responsible partner and economic driver in communities across the country,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. “Because of this, we’ve risen from the most devastating period in our history and embarked on a record-setting comeback.”

Americans are taking notice of the industry’s responsible gaming efforts. The number of Americans who say the industry is committed to responsible gaming has increased by nearly 40 percent since 2018. Further, nearly 80 percent of past-year gamblers are aware of industry-provided responsible gaming resources. Of this group, three-quarters point to specific measures like deposit limits, casino employee training, and time limits as most effective.

These findings come at the start of Responsible Gaming Education Week (RGEW), Sept. 19-25, which brings together all industry stakeholders to promote responsible gaming education while also showcasing the industry’s everyday commitment to responsible gaming.

“Responsible Gaming Education Week provides an opportunity to highlight the tremendous work our members and industry do every day to invest in responsible gaming education,” continued Miller. “As legal gaming expands to new geographies and verticals, everyone engaged with legal gaming must work together to grow responsibly—our collective success depends on it.”

RGEW 2021 features AGA’s Have A Game Plan.^® Bet Responsibly.™ public service campaign, which is uniting the growing sports betting industry to educate and encourage responsible sports wagering. Through partnerships with sports leagues and teams, gaming operators and suppliers, and media companies, the campaign teaches consumers the fundamentals of responsible sports wagering: setting a budget and sticking to it, knowing the odds, keeping it social, and only playing with legal operators.

The AGA, with its members, is building a responsible foundation for legal sports betting. AGA’s Responsible Marketing Code for Sports Wagering, launched a year ago, defines a robust set of principles to protect consumers and sets a high standard for advertising with self-imposed restrictions on target audiences, outlets, and materials branding, while mandating responsible gaming inclusion across marketing activity.

Ensuring consumers have effective, accessible resources if they need help is key to sustainable growth. The AGA recently released policy recommendations for streamlining helpline requirements in national or multistate advertising campaigns, which have since been adopted in Indiana.

Casino gaming is legal in 44 states with the addition of four states in the last five years. Sports betting is legal in 32 states and the District of Columbia while six states offer legal iGaming.

Through July, the commercial gaming industry has generated $4.83 billion in 2021, putting the industry on pace to break its annual revenue record set in 2019. The AGA’s Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker is tracking gaming’s record-setting recovery.

Methodology

Survey results come from two online polls conducted on behalf of the American Gaming Association in the late summer among national samples of 2,000 Americans. The data were weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on age, educational attainment, gender, race, and region. Results from the two full surveys have a margin of error of +/-2%.

• Kantar fielded its survey between August 13-September 1, 2021 among a national sample of 2,000 American voters aged 21 and older.
• YouGov conducted its survey between June 26-31, 2021 among a national sample of 2,033 American aged 21 and older.

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WASHINGTON – American Gaming Association (AGA) President and CEO Bill Miller released the following statement on bipartisan legislation introduced today by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) that would repeal the federal sports betting excise tax on legal operators:

“The federal sports betting excise tax was enacted more than 70 years ago as a tool to prosecute illegal sports betting operators. Today, with sports betting legal in 38 states and Washington, D.C., this antiquated tax puts legal operators at a competitive disadvantage and rewards illegal offshore bookmakers that pay no federal or state taxes, offer no responsible gaming tools, and have no systems in place to prevent underage customers from using their platforms.

The AGA is grateful to Senators Cortez Masto and Hyde-Smith for their commitment to providing a safe, responsible sports betting market and to continuing to help migrate bettors out of the illegal market, which is bereft of consumer protections and a haven for bad actors and tax evaders. The AGA will continue to work with policymakers to enact legislation to address this harmful tax.”

Background

• The Internal Revenue Code currently imposes a federal excise tax of 0.25% on the amount of any legal sports wager, as well as an additional $50 annual head tax for every employee engaged in receiving wagers for or on behalf of any legal sports betting operator. This tax is applied to the amount wagered and not the revenue, unlike any other excise tax. Meanwhile, the $50 head tax on each sportsbook employee further discourages job creation.
• Established in 1951, the excise tax was never intended to be a revenue source, but rather a tool for prosecuting illegal bookmaking operations that did not pay the tax.
• Even before paying the federal excise tax, sportsbooks are low margin businesses with high operating costs including licensing fees, state taxes and other compliance expenses.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Gaming Association (AGA) recently convened leading gaming industry organizations, academic professionals and advocacy groups to chart a new course on the complex issue of responsible gaming. The Responsible Gaming Collaborative will identify the programs and policies that best address responsible gaming and the prevention of problem gambling and hold government accountable for supporting proven, effective solutions. The Collaborative’s launch deepens the gaming industry’s commitment to responsible gaming.

“It’s time to comprehensively review existing responsible gaming policies and regulations,” said Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the AGA. “We must drive a new discussion around proven, effective programs and ensure that governments are appropriately allocating resources.”

The gaming industry is estimated to provide governments with hundreds of millions of dollars annually for responsible gaming research and treatment. The spending of those resources is inconsistent across jurisdictions and no programs exist today to ensure accountability.

In addition to the AGA, key Responsible Gaming Collaborative participants include: 

The National Council on Problem Gambling, the National Center for Responsible Gaming, the University of Nevada-Las Vegas International Gaming Institute, Harvard University’s T.H. Chan Public School of Health, Yale School of Medicine, the National Indian Gaming Association, the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers, the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries and the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.

“This Collaborative with its diverse set of stakeholders is a welcome step forward to creating a unified approach to addressing problem gambling,” said Keith Whyte, Executive Director of the National Council on Problem Gambling.

“No one party or way of thinking is ever enough to create transformative change. That’s why this group is so essential,” said Russell Sanna, Executive Director the National Center for Responsible Gaming. “We appreciate healthy dialogue and debate and are striving to use focused, evidence-based proposals to drive improvement – in both industry practices and government regulations.”

In the coming months, the Collaborative will:

• Conduct a comprehensive review of current responsible gaming policies and regulations;
• Identify programs that work and those that fail to meet their objective;
• Study regulations to determine which are based on solid evidence;
• Determine whether government resources are being properly targeted toward effective programs and prevention;
• Develop a set of recommendations and industry best practices; and
• Work with regulators and other stakeholders to understand the best approaches.

“The word ‘Collaborative’ was chosen deliberately,” said Freeman. “Our goal is to work with regulators, policymakers, experts, advocates and other stakeholders to find the best solutions and direct resources to them.”

About AGA: The American Gaming Association is the premier national trade group representing the $240 billion U.S. casino industry, which supports 1.7 million jobs in 40 states. AGA members include commercial and tribal casino operators, suppliers and other entities affiliated with the gaming industry. It is the mission of the AGA to achieve sound policies and regulations consistent with casino gaming’s modern appeal and vast economic contributions.

The gaming industry has an expansive impact on the U.S. economy – providing stable jobs to nearly two million Americans and generating billions of dollars in tax revenue. This research represents the first comprehensive report on the gaming industry’s national economic impact since 2018.

The gaming industry supports a total economic impact including:

• $329 billion of output (business sales)
• 1.8 million jobs with $104 billion of labor income (wages, salaries, tips, benefits and other labor income)
• $53 billion of federal, state and local taxes, including $13.5 billion of gaming taxes

The gaming industry directly employs more than 700,000 people in the U.S. This includes nearly 600,000 jobs on-site at casinos and corporate offices, more than 23,000 at U.S.-based operations of gaming manufacturers, and 89,000 at businesses providing goods and services to casino patrons during casino trips.

The gaming industry directly employs more than 700,000 people in the U.S. This includes nearly 600,000 jobs on-site at casinos and corporate offices, more than 23,000 at U.S.-based operations of gaming manufacturers, and 89,000 at businesses providing goods and services to casino patrons during casino trips.

The $53 million in taxes generated by the gaming industry provides critical funding for local public programs and services, including education, infrastructure and economic development, as well as supplemental revenue for state general funds.

According to the report, America’s gaming industry directly employs more than 700,000 people in the U.S. Put in context with the broader U.S. economy:

• Gaming provides more direct jobs than the air transportation, postal service or motion picture and video sectors.
• Direct casino employment accounts for 1 in 33 leisure and hospitality jobs.

Recent, related AGA research shows the economic benefits generated by gaming are widely recognized by Americans, with a record 71 percent of adults saying the casino gaming industry has a positive impact on the U.S. economy.

WASHINGTON – Today, the American Gaming Association sent a letter to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) reinforcing AGA’s priorities for successful legal sports betting markets and commitment to work with Sen. Schumer and all stakeholders working to stamp out the vast illegal market.

“AGA has long been a leading advocate for eliminating the vast illegal sports betting market in the U.S., which was largely enabled by the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA),” the letter stated. “We believe this can best be achieved through law enforcement oversight and robust state regulation. AGA firmly believes that additional federal engagement is not warranted at this time.”

Read the full letter here.

About AGA: The American Gaming Association is the premier national trade group representing the $261 billion U.S. casino industry, which supports 1.8 million jobs nationwide. AGA members include commercial and tribal casino operators, gaming suppliers and other entities affiliated with the gaming industry. It is the mission of the AGA to achieve sound policies and regulations consistent with casino gaming’s modern appeal and vast economic contributions.

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WASHINGTON – Today, the American Gaming Association sent a letter to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) reinforcing AGA’s priorities for successful legal sports betting markets and commitment to work with Sen. Schumer and all stakeholders working to stamp out the vast illegal market.

“AGA has long been a leading advocate for eliminating the vast illegal sports betting market in the U.S., which was largely enabled by the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA),” the letter stated. “We believe this can best be achieved through law enforcement oversight and robust state regulation. AGA firmly believes that additional federal engagement is not warranted at this time.”

Read the full letter here.

About AGA: The American Gaming Association is the premier national trade group representing the $261 billion U.S. casino industry, which supports 1.8 million jobs nationwide. AGA members include commercial and tribal casino operators, gaming suppliers and other entities affiliated with the gaming industry. It is the mission of the AGA to achieve sound policies and regulations consistent with casino gaming’s modern appeal and vast economic contributions.

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