Sports betting addiction: the evidence is in.
Online sports betting went from illegal almost everywhere to a phone app in 39 states. Searches for help, bankruptcies and helpline calls followed.
A sportsbook in every pocket.
Online sports betting is an addiction-for-profit industry. It is built on a phone in your pocket, pushed by promotions and ads during every game, and it makes its money from the people who can least afford to lose.
The Foundation for Drug Policy Solutions put the research on sports betting addiction in one place so you can check every number yourself.
From $4.9 billion to $167 billion.
Legal sports wagers grew about 34-fold between 2017, the year before the Supreme Court struck down the federal ban, and 2025. Nearly all of it is online.
Sources: Harvard Gazette (2017, 2023); American Gaming Association (2025).
Seven things to know.
- Before 2018, full sports betting was legal only in Nevada. It is legal in 39 states now, almost all of it online.
- Americans bet about $167 billion on sports in 2025.
- Searches for gambling addiction help rose 23 percent after the Supreme Court opened the door.
- In states with online betting, bankruptcies, debt collections and loan delinquencies went up, and savings went down.
- Young men are the core customers. Half of all calls to the national gambling helpline come from people 18 to 34.
- Prediction markets like Kalshi now offer sports bets nationwide, including in states that never legalized them.
- FDPS endorsed the Event Contract Enforcement Act and supports guardrails like those in the SAFE Bet Act.
Six ways sports betting is doing harm.
Each one links to the study, survey or public record behind it.
It went from almost nowhere to everywhere in seven years
legalized sports betting after the Supreme Court struck down the federal ban in 2018.
Wagers grew from $4.9 billion in 2017 to $121.1 billion in 2023, with 94 percent placed online. By 2025, handle reached about $167 billion and sportsbook revenue hit nearly $17 billion, up 22.8 percent in a single year. Meanwhile, 43 percent of Americans now say legal sports betting is bad for society, up from 34 percent in 2022.
More people are looking for help to quit
contacts a month to the national gambling helpline.
Online searches for gambling addiction help rose about 23 percent nationally after legalization, according to a study in JAMA Internal Medicine. In 2025, 31 percent of helpline contacts involved online or app-based gambling, up from 23 percent the year before, and more than 73 percent of callers reported financial stress.
OPB on JAMA Internal Medicine · National Problem Gambling Helpline 2025 report
It is draining household finances
higher likelihood of personal bankruptcy in states that allowed online betting.
Debt collection amounts rose 8 percent and credit scores fell. A separate study of more than 230,000 households found net investment fell nearly 14 percent as money moved from savings and retirement accounts into bets, and households with the least cushion saw credit card balances and overdrafts go up.
Young men are the target, and they are calling for help
of helpline contacts now come from people 18 to 34.
More than a third of men under 30 bet on sports in the past year, and 22 percent of all American adults did. Betting apps reach them with push notifications and constant advertising. About 70 percent of helpline contacts are men.
Pew Research Center · National Problem Gambling Helpline 2025 report
Families feel the losses
more intimate partner violence after an upset NFL loss where sports betting is legal.
“Financial losses from gambling amplify emotional reactions to unexpected team losses.”
The money a bettor loses is money a family loses, and the stress comes home.
Arnesen and Matsuzawa, San Diego State University CHEPS, 2025
Prediction markets are sports betting by another name
Kalshi sells sports “event contracts” even in states that never legalized betting.
They register as federally regulated exchanges instead of sportsbooks and claim state gambling laws do not apply. States are suing. Connecticut sued Kalshi in August 2026.
“Sports event contracts are no different than sports betting.” Connecticut Attorney General William Tong
How Congress can rein in sports betting.
FDPS treats sports betting the way it treats every addiction-for-profit industry: the companies should not be allowed to build their business on the people who get hooked.
Guardrails like the SAFE Bet Act
Bans betting ads during live games and “bonus bet” promotions, caps deposits at five a day, bans credit card deposits, requires affordability checks on big bets, bans AI-targeted promotions and creates a national self-exclusion list.
Pass the Event Contract Enforcement Act
The bipartisan bill from Reps. Blake Moore and Salud Carbajal would bar prediction markets from offering contracts on elections and gaming, including sports, unless a state chooses to allow them. FDPS endorsed it.
End the “free bet” hook
Promotions that hand new users “free” money to start betting are the front door to addiction. They should be banned outright.
Fund prevention and treatment
States are collecting billions in sports betting taxes. Prevention and treatment funding for gambling addiction should keep pace with the industry’s growth.
Need help now? Call or text the National Problem Gambling Helpline at 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), or chat online. It is free and confidential.
Call 1-800-MY-RESETSports betting addiction, answered.
Is sports betting addictive?
Yes. Gambling disorder is a recognized addiction, and online sports betting puts a casino on your phone 24 hours a day. After legalization, searches for gambling addiction help rose about 23 percent nationally, according to a study in JAMA Internal Medicine, and the national gambling helpline now averages more than 31,000 contacts a month.
How many states have legal sports betting?
39 states have legalized sports betting in some form since the Supreme Court struck down the federal ban in 2018, and most bets are now placed online through phone apps.
How does sports betting affect personal finances?
Research from UCLA and USC economists found that in states with online sports betting, the likelihood of personal bankruptcy rose 25 to 30 percent, debt collections rose 8 percent and credit scores fell. A Northwestern-led study found household net investment fell nearly 14 percent as money shifted from savings into bets.
Who is most at risk?
Young men. Pew found 36 percent of men under 30 bet on sports in the past year, and nearly half of contacts to the national gambling helpline come from people 18 to 34. Households with little savings take the biggest financial hit.
Are prediction markets like Kalshi gambling?
Their sports contracts work like sports bets: you pay to wager on a game result, a point spread or a player stat. They operate as federally registered exchanges and claim state gambling laws do not apply, which is why states including Connecticut have sued.
What is the SAFE Bet Act?
A federal bill that would ban sports betting ads during live games and “bonus bet” promotions, limit deposits to five per day, ban credit card deposits, require affordability checks on large bets, ban AI-targeted promotions and create a national self-exclusion list.
Where can I get help for a gambling problem?
Call or text 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), the National Problem Gambling Helpline, or use its online chat.
The house always wins. Families should not have to pay for it.
- Ayers et al., JAMA Internal Medicine, 2025 (via OPB)
- Hollenbeck, Larsen and Proserpio, “The Financial Consequences of Legalized Sports Gambling,” 2024 (UCLA Anderson Review)
- Baker, Balthrop, Johnson, Kotter and Pisciotta, “Gambling Away Stability,” 2024 (Kellogg Insight)
- Arnesen and Matsuzawa, CHEPS working paper, 2025
- Pew Research Center, October 2, 2025
- National Problem Gambling Helpline 2025 annual report (via iGaming Business)
- Harvard Gazette, January 6, 2026; American Gaming Association 2025 figures (via Covers)
- SAFE Bet Act fact sheet, Rep. Paul Tonko; Event Contract Enforcement Act, Rep. Blake Moore, March 2026
- National Council on Problem Gambling, 1-800-MY-RESET
