Sports betting used to be taboo. It was mostly illegal, heavily restricted and seen as a threat to the integrity of the games. Leagues and broadcasters wanted nothing to do with it.

Athletes were ridiculed and banned if they were suspected of gambling ties. A prominent example is professional baseball player Pete Rose, who received a lifetime ban from baseball and was shut out of the Hall of Fame due to allegations of betting on games.

Gambling close to the action still carries consequences. In October 2025, Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were arrested for alleged involvement in illegal gambling. The story sent shockwaves through the NBA.

Yet for the average fan, sports betting has never been more mainstream.

Following a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning a federal ban, sports betting quickly became legal in most U.S. states. What was once confined to casinos is now available on a smartphone.

Sports fans are blitzed with gambling ads, whether watching a game at home or attending one. But despite its growing familiarity, sports betting carries real risks for those who participate.

“What we’re looking at is the total normalization of a known addictive product,” addiction counselor Harry Levant said during a panel discussion at Harvard University. “Does it get any more normalized than when a 9-year-old child visits Fenway Park and sees MGM and DraftKings on the Green Monster?”

Mr. Levant “noted that the American Psychiatric Association has classified gambling addiction alongside substance abuse disorders such as heroin and cocaine addiction since 2013. Despite the risk of gambling customers becoming addicted, however, existing policies allow online sportsbooks, such as DraftKings and FanDuel, to deploy advertising campaigns that…are designed to distract customers from the risk of harm” (Harvard Law Today).

An August 2024 NBC News article showed what that harm can look like: “In separate papers released this month, academics have found that households in states where gambling was legalized saw significantly reduced savings, as well as lower investments in assets like stocks that are generally considered more financially sound. Meanwhile, states that legalized sports betting saw their residents’ aggregate credit scores decrease, while bankruptcies increased.”

Gambling losses are taking a toll. As more information has emerged, some lawmakers who supported legalization to boost revenue in their state now admit they misjudged the consequences.

In early 2026, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine told The Plain Dealer, “People have asked me, ‘What mistakes did you make?’ And I’ll lead with signing a bill for sports gaming.”

“It’s a huge problem among young males up to 45. It’s a huge problem,” Mr. DeWine continued. “And we have many of them addicted, many of them spending money that they do not have.”

Sports betting offers people a path to quick money, but the costs to users and society at large are high. Gambling points to a deeper problem with the way we think.

Digital Mainstream

Advertisements appear alongside commercials for insurance and fast food. Betting odds are discussed during pregame shows. Podcasts, fantasy leagues and even stadium signage promote wagering. Technology is at the heart of it all.

Apps such as FanDuel and DraftKings dominate the market. Within seconds, users can create accounts, deposit money and wager on virtually any game—or part of a game—happening anywhere.

Some people who bet on sports do so only occasionally. They wager when they have money they can afford to lose and then stop. But the convenience is designed to increase repeat play, which means higher risk of addiction.

Parlays combine multiple outcomes into a single wager with higher payouts. An example would be betting that three different teams in different sports would all win on the same night. If even one leg or outcome fails, the entire bet loses. These bets are statistically harder to win, yet are heavily promoted because they promise larger returns.

Proposition bets fragment the game even further. Instead of wagering on the final score, “prop” bets allow users to bet on individual plays, player statistics or novelty outcomes, such as the color of the Gatorade during game celebrations or whether a fan will streak across the field.

Every moment becomes an opportunity to gamble. It is easy to get hooked.

Open a betting app during a game and the screen flashes phrases such as “Boosted Odds,” “Risk-Free Bet,” and “Cash Out Now”—common promotional language used by major sports betting platforms. The tone is urgent and immediate.

Notifications are timed with bonuses structured to encourage continued play. The “near miss” effect—losing by one leg in a parlay—creates the psychological impression that a win was close and is therefore attainable next time.

Research in behavioral psychology shows that intermittent rewards—unpredictable wins—can reinforce behavior more effectively than consistent ones. This is why casino slot machines, a more traditional form of gambling, are so addictive. The design of modern sports betting mimics this pattern.

Addiction keeps hope alive even as losses accumulate.

The faster the cycle, the less time there is to reflect. Watching a game becomes tapping a screen, again and again. A winning bet at the right time makes it all feel worthwhile.

Left unchecked, compulsive gambling can devastate finances and relationships.

Rigged Game

Industry data and lawsuits reveal that a small fraction of users—often less than one percent—generate the majority of gambling revenue.

A 2024 article published by Connecticut Public Radio reported, “Connecticut officials released a new study examining the impact of legalized gambling on state residents…the first study of its kind for Connecticut since state lawmakers legalized online sports betting in 2021.

“About 1 in 10 Connecticut adults reported betting on professional sports, e-sports and fantasy sports at either a sportsbook, casino or online site, according to the report.

“The study also found that 1.8%, or about 50,000 state residents, have a gambling problem. About half of the state’s online sports betting revenue comes from those individuals.”

Let those numbers sink in: 50,000 people providing half the total sports gambling revenue of a state of 3.68 million.

Even if a person wants to stop, there are incentives built in to keep them hooked.

Some losing bettors have claimed they were offered bonuses, credits and personal outreach designed to keep them going. Loyalty programs and “VIP hosts” encourage continued play.

And the damage is not limited to the bettor’s bank account. Betting also changes how people watch the game.

When money is tied to every play, suspicion follows. A player sitting out with an injury, a missed free throw, an early substitution, a dropped pass—ordinary moments can suddenly look like manipulation. The question shifts from “What happened?” to “Was that intentional?”

Professional sports depend on trust. Without confidence in fair competition, fan loyalty and engagement inevitably suffer.

The Root Cause

We have described the behavior—chasing losses, monetizing weakness, justifying risk—yet the deeper question remains: Why are people so easily pulled into it?

The laws may have changed, but the human heart has not.

Scripture shows that the way people naturally think is the opposite of the way God commands. Romans 8 says, “The carnal [natural] mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be” (vs. 7).

One of the laws people are naturally opposed to is the Tenth Commandment, which forbids covetousness. Read Exodus 20:17 and Deuteronomy 5:21. The archaic-sounding King James word “covet” simply means desiring something we should not have.

The urge to gamble is motivated by human nature. It involves coveting money we have not earned.

Jesus Christ warned, “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consists not in the abundance of the things which he possesses” (Luke 12:15).

Covetousness begins in the mind but progresses into our actions. The apostle Paul said in Romans 7, “The good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do” (vs. 19). Although he was a great servant of God, Paul was not immune to temptation. Earlier in the chapter, he said: “I had not known lust, except the law had said, You shall not covet” (vs. 7).

Human nature is a lifelong struggle. Even when we know better, we tend to do the opposite. We promise restraint, justify one more attempt, and convince ourselves we are different.

If someone like Paul could admit that he struggled with doing the right thing, we should be willing to do the same. Those who struggle with gambling are encouraged to seek help. The National Problem Gambling Helpline offers confidential support.

The natural way people think is inclined toward self—toward shortcuts, immediate gratification and rationalized behavior that feels rewarding. That tendency explains not only gambling, but countless other habits.

Sports betting did not create these impulses. Legalization—driven by lust, greed and apathy—simply amplified them.

To learn more about what human nature is, why it drives behaviors like gambling, and where it really came from, read our free booklet Did God Create Human Nature?