In a landmark ruling published this morning, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed with New Jersey. The federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, passed by Congress in 1992, banned wagering on professional and college sports. The Act also explicitly prohibited states from sponsoring or authorizing such gaming.
That language had always held New Jersey back. New Jersey officials first tried to legalize sports betting at casinos and race tracks in 2012. The NCAA, NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB promptly sued. The case has been tied up in the courts ever since. Lower courts generally held that proactively regulating sports betting clearly “authorized” the federally banned activity.
The U.S. Supreme Court saw it differently.