ABSTRACT
Gambling is nearly as old as civilization itself. The significance of gambling, and particularly sports gambling, in modern society is apparent to even the most casual observer. Laws forbidding gambling by the masses on workdays were designed to keep people working rather than wagering. Just as gambling and gambling regulation went hand-in-hand, so did gambling and sports. Some ambiguity is inherent in all definitions of gambling, including statutory definitions. Even trading in the stock market has been used as an example of a form of legal gambling. In the United States, there is no shortage of federal and state legislation designed to prohibit or control gambling, including sports gambling. Every state has laws banning or regulating gambling, and all but one have laws which criminalize sports gambling. Some professional teams have even banned gambling by players during team flights. Season-long fantasy sports gambling did more than jump-start the growth of sports gambling in the 1980s and 1990s.
