Poll: Many in US Oppose Internet, Sports Betting

A new poll finds most Americans oppose Internet and half oppose sports betting, but many have gambled themselves at a casino.

The Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll found two-thirds of those surveyed oppose changing the law to allow bets to be placed over the Internet, and 53 percent oppose allowing bets on the outcome of professional or college sporting events.

Yet the poll also found 62 percent of those surveyed have gambled at a casino at least once. One in three respondents said they or someone in their household had visited a casino within the past year, and one in five participated in an office betting pool.

"It's fun, it's sociable and it's legal, so why not?" said Mauro Muro, a 33-year-old Atlantic City resident who regularly patronizes the city's 11 casinos. "It's good exercise for your brain when you start calculating. You watch your numbers, and you're always thinking."

The telephone poll surveyed more than 1,000 people randomly chosen across the country, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Fifty-four percent of those surveyed said legalized sports betting is a bad idea because it can promote excessive gambling and can corrupt sports. But 39 percent said that because so many people bet illegally on sports already, it should be allowed and taxed by the government.

Sixty-seven percent of respondents oppose legalizing Internet betting, echoing the opinion of Sam Baker, an 81-year-old who moved to Atlantic City from Las Vegas 20 years ago.

"You can go anywhere today to gamble, so why hit bottom with the Internet?" he asked. "I like to see my money come and go right in front of me."

New Jersey is suing U.S. Justice Department to overturn a law that restricts sports betting to only four states — Nevada, where Las Vegas sports books determine the odds for sporting events across the country; Delaware; Montana; and Oregon. Only Nevada and Delaware currently offer it.