Sports gambling in the digital age fuels underage addiction

Graphic by Jex Popov

A person crying after losing all of their money

Cell phones and ultra convenient apps, combined with major companies and their slick advertising campaigns, have resulted in sports gambling becoming a popular outlet for as many as 19% of Americans. Some use it as a hoped-for source of income while others enjoy simply backing their favorite sports team when they play.

It’s little wonder that addiction to sports gambling is a major issue, and an equally concerning issue is the growing number of teens now betting illegally on sports because the safeguards in apps are so easy to evade.

Sports betting began with horse races in the early 1600s — gambling on the fastest horse during horse races. Since then, it has ballooned into an uncontrollable gambling problem across multiple sports, a trend fueled by the recent transition from in-person to digital betting as technology has developed. 

In 2018, $6.58 billion was bet by Americans. Just four years ago, live online gambling was illegal, but the practice became legalized in May 2022 and is now legalized in 31 states, excluding California, with more plans of legalization in the works. In 2023, that amount soared to $119.84 billion — not to mention estimates on illegal bets, unregulated or underage, ballooning the total to as high as $150 billion.

History of sports gambling: playbooks transition online

Most bets are carried through third parties known as sportsbooks, which track wagers. In the 1900s, bettors would physically reach out to a sportsbook to place a wager, allowing corrupt practices of players and coaches betting on their own teams. In 1919, members of White Sox, grossly underpaid at the time, were accused of betting against themselves to purposefully lose the World Series and earn between $70,000 and $100,000 through stakes. 

With the rise of the internet, bookmakers are now also online. Popular websites such as DraftKings, which was established in 2012 and went public in April 2020, reported a revenue of $1.2 billion in its latest quarter.

Technology has allowed gambling to be feasible on mobile devices, making it even easier for people to gamble away entire life savings with the click of a few buttons.

Teens are the new demographic most at risk

This ease of gambling has led to a serious problem where teens and illegal gamblers ages 18-21 use online gambling apps to fuel their addiction. A National Collegiate Athletic Association study found 58% of 18- to 22-year-olds have participated in sports gambling. Teens who bet between $1 to $50 typically lose $10 to $300 per day. 

One student, who asked to stay anonymous, told The Falcon that they have spent at least $5,000 on gambling in the past two years, though only $400 was spent on sports gambling. The rest was spent on cryptocurrency and video game skin gambling.

“I started sports gambling on the Super Bowl [LVIII] after seeing a TikTok on three leg parlays,” the student said.

In a three-leg parlay, three bets are held at the same time. If all three succeed, the multiplier for the initial bet is increased substantially.

The student lost $125 betting on a three parlay on the Super Bowl this year. The parlay included San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Brock Purdy rushing attempts, Kansas City Chief quarterback Patrick Mahomes rushing attempts and San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel rushing yards. Due to Samuel’s injury in the game, the three leg parlay didn’t pay off. If all three events happened during the game, the student would’ve received $1,000 from his initial bet.

Current identification guidelines unable to prevent teen gambling

To prevent youth from accessing these online websites, many sports gambling applications such as FanDuel employ a “strict identity authentication process to sign-up.” However, many of these guidelines do little to prevent underage gambling, as it is easy for teens to take their parents’ or older siblings’ IDs to bypass security.

The student who lost $125 used his older brother’s ID to bypass the 18 year old age requirement. Since then, he has gambled on 10 separate games. Recently, he made a bet for the Lakers vs. the Warriors but lost when star player LeBron James got injured before the game. 

“I believe sports gambling puts even more enjoyment into watching the sport,” the student said. “Because of how often rosters change, rooting for a certain team isn’t extremely exciting. When gambling becomes involved, you become more excited to watch the game.”

The student believes underage gambling is OK as long as teens only gamble money they have earned themselves. His parents are aware of his gambling habits and are concerned about his addiction worsening.

Said the student: “I believe gambling has actually improved my academics as it has encouraged me to pay more attention to my math class. Through my math class, I am able to learn more about my odds of winning. Gambling has, however, made me lose a sense of money. On these websites, I see people who win big and the large numbers make me think less of large sums of money. I have high hopes for the future. I will, however, bet less on parlays.”

Preventing teen addictions

Preventing addictions at a young age is vital. Youth facing high pressure situations are more likely to develop addictions to distract themselves from these stresses. Addictions can easily lead to an increase in worsened academic performance and strained relationships with family and friends, Wellness Center lead therapist Shobha Vaidyanathan said. 

“If it is a teen gambling, then they have schools that they miss out on. They give up their activities,” Vaidyanathan said. “It results in a high where sometimes you win, and sometimes you don’t.”

From a therapy point of view, gambling can be considered a disease, resulting in a need to get high which can be fulfilled through gambling. However, the root problem itself can be extremely difficult to resolve. If left unattended, the effects can leave a lasting impact due to youth’s lack of neurocognitive development.

What makes sports gambling especially problematic is the easy access to online sportsbooks. Because online sportsbooks do not have an easy way to prevent youth gambling, experts say parents need to take an active role in monitoring their teens’ behavior. The open question is whether gambling companies will ever do enough, or care enough, to make sure teens are not among their customers.

Resources for those with a gambling addiction: 

Call: 1-800-GAMBLER

Text: 800GAM

Chat: 1800gamblerchat.org

California Specific: 

41690 Ivy Street, Suite A7 Murrieta, CA 92562

714-765-5804

www.calpg.org