Supreme Court decision means esports betting can step out of the shadows

The Supreme Court of the United States today overruled a 1992 federal law that prohibited states from authorizing betting on sporting events. Today’s 6-3 decision will enable each state to decide if it wants to permit sports-related gambling, which is something that a number of states are considering as part of an effort to raise tax revenue. This ruling applies to esports betting — although states could still decide to regulate the likes of League of Legends, Dota 2, and Fortnite separately from traditional leagues such as the NFL, MLB, and NCAA.

“Today’s decision opens the door for regulated esports betting in the U.S., but the question remains of how each state will treat esports,” Eilers & Krejcik game industry analyst Chris Grove explained in a note to GamesBeat. “In Nevada, for example, esports aren’t handled like traditional sports for the purposes of sports betting. Each state will have to make their own decision about whether to lump esports in with traditional sports or to treat it separately.”