History of sports gambling: It’s an age-old pastime

If you’ve ever wondered how long sports betting has been around, you might be surprised to find out just how long people have enjoyed wagering on athletic contests.

Although the industry continues to boom and has likely not yet peaked in popularity, documented history of the pastime shows it has been around for generations, and enjoyed by all sorts of people regardless of social class, race, wealth or age.

While there are differing accounts as to what constitutes the official start of sports betting, there have been reports that late 19^th century sheep farmers used to kill by betting each other on who could hit a stone farther with a wooden stick. This was a primitive form of golf as well as an unrefined form of sports betting.

By many accounts, sports betting first made its mark and gained popularity in American in the early 19^th century when slave owners would stage matches between slaves and a big part of the entertainment of the event involved wagering between spectators and organizers.

In their excellent book on the history of sports betting titled “Betting the Line: Sports Wagering in American Life,” authors Richard Davies and Richard Abram suggest that plantation owners who staged fights between slaves achieved a sort of social status by hosting such events.

The book goes on to document several important milestones in the history of sports betting, including the invention of the point spread in the 1930s.

Although it seems second-nature today to have sports betting centered around the point spread – it’s the only way most of us know how to bet on sports – the popularity of betting did not take off until this concept was developed in order to generate action both sides.

Previously, would-be bettors could only take one side or the other, and there was no real incentive to take the underdog except for a big potential payout should that team win. The point spread gave bettors reasons to consider both teams on a game-by-game basis.

Credit for the invention and evolution of the point spread is generally credited to Charles McNeill, a Chicago securities analyst who developed the system in the 1930s. The same basic concept is still largely unchanged today.

In “Betting the Line,” the authors state that the invention of the point spread was the “single-most important development in the history of sports betting.”  

The book does not offer any advice on how to handicap or bet games, but instead gives a broad-perspective view as to how sports betting and its history help defines Americans and their culture. Read more about recommended sports betting books.

“Wagering is an important part, and some would say the driving force behind, the enormous popularity of sports in contemporary society,” the authors state.

 The book includes interviews with legal and illegal bookmakers alike, and states that the majority of sports betting that takes place in America is still done illegally. They estimate most of the more than $200 billion a year that is wagered on sports takes place outside of Nevada, which is currently the only state with legalized sports betting.

The book also goes into detail about various steps that have been taken by the government to outlaw or derail sports betting, most of which have failed before they really got off the ground.

The last significant push to outlaw sports betting came earlier in this decade when Arizona Senator John McCain headed legislation that would ban betting on amateur sports.

His proposal would have banned betting on college sports, which makes up a large percentage of action for Nevada sports books and other bookies as well. The bill failed by a wide margin.

More good news might be on the way for sports bettors because legislators are starting to realize a few things. For one, they are accepting that sports betting isn’t going anywhere, and secondly, they see a potentially lucrative source of revenue if they were to legalize and tax the practice.

Some estimates have suggested states could pull in $100 million per year in taxes on legalized sports betting. With many states tens of millions of dollars in debt and no relief in sight, don’t be surprised if you see a few more join Nevada soon and legalize sports betting.