EndGame: If Not For The Supreme Court Eight Years Ago …

InGame

The U.S. sports betting world moves quickly and unpredictably in 2026. In order to properly take stock of it all, we offer InGame’s “EndGame,” an end-of-week compilation of the top storylines, some overlooked items, and all the other news bits from this past week that we found interesting.

A belated happy PASPA Day to all

Hard as it is to believe in 2026, there was a time not long ago when it was difficult to place a legal sports bet in these here United States. If a bettor wasn’t in Nevada, they were S.O.L.

That all changed eight years ago this Thursday, on May 14, 2018, with a U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down the nation’s Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992. New Jersey had challenged the PASPA provisions preventing states from legalizing sports betting, and the sports leagues and NCAA had in turn challenged New Jersey’s law through which it intended to begin allowing wagers.

In its short-of-unanimous ruling in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, the high court found that PASPA violated the Tenth Amendment, which gives states any rights that are not already explicitly granted to the federal government. And that opened the floodgates.

There is now a high likelihood that you live in a state where you can place a legal bet, although the two biggest states — California and Texas — remain holdouts where prospective sports gamblers are limited to use of prediction market contracts or illegal means such as offshore accounts. While sports betting isn’t allowed everywhere, it’s safe to say that through ubiquitous advertising, partnerships with the same leagues that once scorned the practice, and other means, it has become normalized in American culture to an extent that would have been unthinkable a decade ago.

Happy PASPA Day. In West Virginia we had the legislation already passed and ready to go when the ruling came down! https://t.co/AwkvZaWwvI

— Shawn Fluharty (@WVUFLU) May 14, 2026

Minors placing bets in Connecticut

It’s only fair to acknowledge some of the downside from the proliferation of sports betting. A new example: There are numerous cases in Connecticut of children using their parents’ DraftKings and FanDuel accounts to place bets, according to a report from CT Insider. State records show the children placing bets were as young as 7, the article stated.

As Connecticut’s two largest sports betting operators, DraftKings and FanDuel identified more than 200 suspected instances in a 12-month period of bets being placed by individuals younger than 21, CT Insider reported based on records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

In the report, Kristofer Gilman, director of the gaming division within the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, credited the sportsbook operators with taking the issue seriously and using advanced technology to try to identify such instances and ban the accounts being used. The hundreds of cases reported to regulators may, however, be just a fraction of total volume of underage betting, Gilman said.

The Connecticut Legislature this session approved a measure, awaiting action by Gov. Ned Lamont, that would provide penalties of up to three months in prison, a fine of up to $500, or both, for adults found to have let someone underage open a gambling account or place bets in their name.

Betting handle down in Arizona, Colorado

Arizona and Colorado are slower than some of the other states in reporting their monthly sports betting figures, and their latest reports for March have something else in common: their statewide handle was down from a year prior.

Arizonans wagered $836.9 million on sports in March, representing a 5.7% decline from March 2025, according to the Arizona Department of Gaming. The Colorado Department of Revenue reported that the total handle of $560.9 million was off 9.2% year-over-year.

Maryland Lottery and Gaming, meanwhile, had a different story in its most recent numbers, for betting in April. The $574.2 million wagered there actually represented an 11.8% increase over April 2025.

Bill in PA would tax prediction markets

A Pennsylvania lawmaker has filed a bill that would bring prediction markets — and their sports event contracts — under a state regulatory framework with a 20% tax rate. Under HB 2497, prediction markets such as Kalshi or Polymarket would be required to get a license from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board and the minimum age of their customers would be 21, similar to legal sportsbooks and three years older than what the prediction markets traditionally use. A one-year license would cost $1 million.

The bill, which was referred to the House Gaming Oversight Committee, calls for the state regulator to issue temporary rules within a year if the law comes into effect, and permanent regulations within a year after that. It would be able to restrict trades on elections, military conflicts, natural disasters, and court rulings.

In legislative news elsewhere, the Colorado Senate signed off Wednesday on a sports betting measure already approved by the House to ban credit card funding and push notifications. SB 131 now heads to Gov. Jared Polis for action. In Minnesota, a bill designed to make prediction markets illegal was sent to Gov. Tim Walz Thursday.

— Jill R. Dorson

Fairley change-of-plea hearing delayed

The change-of-plea hearing for Marves Fairley, who was charged in both the NBA and NCAA sports betting scandals, was postponed this week. A docket entry in the Eastern District of New York stated the hearing has been adjourned sine die, which means there is no new date set.

The hearing was originally to have taken place Tuesday. Fairley has already signed documents stating he will plead guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering in the NBA case, and to bribery and wire fraud charges in the NCAA case. Fairley, who billed himself as a tout for NBA games, is one of two defendants named in both cases.

— Jill R. Dorson

Odds and ends

Bally’s, which already provides retail sports betting at its two casinos in Rhode Island, has won a contract with the Rhode Island Lottery to become the state’s second online betting operator. Bally’s was selected over Rush Street Interactive and its BetRivers brand. The two operators were the only ones to bid to compete with IGT, which has had an online monopoly up to now in a state with a relatively high tax rate of 51% on sports betting revenue.
Hard Rock Digital and GeoComply announced an expansion of their partnership intended to provide additional growth and fraud prevention efforts of the online operator. The agreement involves use of IDComply, which enhances identity verification safeguards through machine learning intelligence, precise location signals, and real-time behavioral analytics.
iGaming Ontario has introduced BetGuard, a responsible gambling tool enabling individuals to opt out of Ontario’s regulated online gaming platforms through one online portal. Those making use of the option, at BetGuard.ca, will be prevented from accessing their existing gambling accounts, creating new ones, or receiving marketing communications from any regulated iGaming site in Ontario.