The Common Era of NFL & Gambling

Tune into any NFL broadcast or even click on any league-related link, and it is very noticeable that the NFL is immersed, to say the least, up to its armpits in a high-stakes and extremely complicated relationship with the more than billion-dollar-a-year gambling industry. 

Dating back to days of the suspensions of Green Bay Packer running back Paul Horning and Detroit Lion defensive lineman Alex Karras, the NFL has been in outright opposition to any form or association with what it termed as “legal sports wagering.” 

However, today’s NFL, now realizing the enormous dollars ripe for the picking with a multitude of electronic and brick-and-mortar gambling organizations, is in bed with what once was an enemy against which it feared had the potential to undermine the integrity of the game.

Commissioner Roger Goodell has expressed with a passion his visions of a league which can gross over $25 billion annually by 2027, and the sponsorships, advertising dollars and other benefits afforded by a tie-in to a vast growing sports wagering industry apparently will afford a generous share in reaching that goal.

However, those visions of riches and dollar signs dancing in the eyes of Park Avenue suits and the owners also have created a plethora of complaints about inconsistent interpretations of rules which appear to be more fluid than etched in stone, questionable inequities in suspensions and just blatant hypocrisy.

When examining the language pertaining to permissible forms and types of gambling for current players, current administrative league and team employees, former/ terminated employees who still are receiving salaries or settlements from league entities or even players, coaches and staff members no longer affiliated with the league an expert is needed to parse the verbiage, and even then there are no guarantees that the end result will be accurate.

Despite off-season OTA and training camp sit-down Q&A’s with league and NFLPA officials, questions still abound.

The significance of the NFL’s new posture with gambling was further brought to light in the pre-game of this past season’s Lions-Chiefs 2023 kickoff game when Mike Tirico of NBC Sports was very direct in his questions to Commissioner Roger Goodell about the NFL and gambling.

Tirico asked, “Are you comfortable with how the league is reconciling gambling as a business entity for some of the league right now, and players —10 of whom were suspended this year for gambling? Are you comfortable with where it sits right now in trying to protect the integrity of the game?”

Goodell obviously was forewarned that these questions were coming, and after the appropriate pause that suggested some deep thought, the commissioner responded, “Well, Mike, it’s one of the reasons we oppose legalized sports betting, because of the risk to the integrity of the game.” 

Continuing with his well-rehearsed response, Goodell added, “And so that’s always going to be our number one priority. When the Supreme Court overruled that, we have to be in that space. And it’s actually helped us with trying to educate our fans, educate our personnel. This isn’t just about players. It affects every league employee, every club employee. And so it’s pretty simple. If you bet on the NFL and you’re a part of the NFL, you’ve got a problem.”

The NFL is not the only professional sports league navigating its way through the complexities associated with the gambling industry as both the NBA and MLB recently have engaged in a series of action to resolve their respective issues.

Interpretations of the NFL’s stance and its applications of rules if and when offenses are uncovered will continue to be points of discussion this off-season, but while still carefully wading those murky waters, the NFL continues to rake in the chips and bank those dollars.

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