The floodgates opened in 2018 when the Supreme Court cut down a 1992 federal law that limited sports betting primarily to Nevada.
Now, about 30 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico allow sports gambling either online or in person. That means about 30 percent of Americans can place a legal wager on the Super Bowl where they live. In November, California residents will vote on whether to open their state to sports betting.
Wagering on sports is “endemic and acceptable and so mainstream that it is now a major pillar of American entertainment,” said Timothy Fong, one of the directors of the gambling studies program at U.C.L.A.
“The question,” he continued, “is what kind of impact is this going to have on our mental health, on our public health?”