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It doesn't sound like the NFL is quite ready to embrace this whole gambling thing. At least, not yet.
Just hours after the Supreme Court paved the way for legalized sports gambling by striking down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA), the NFL responded by saying that the league plans to lobby Congress to "enact a core regulatory framework" before sports betting completely takes hold in states across the country and turns into a Pandora's Box that can never be closed.
"The NFL's long-standing and unwavering commitment to protecting the integrity of our game remains absolute," the league said in a statement. "Congress has long-recognized the potential harms posed by sports betting to the integrity of sporting contests and the public confidence in these events. Given that history, we intend to call on Congress again, this time to enact a core regulatory framework for legalized sports betting."
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The NFL might have a tough time getting Congress to pass anything related to sports gambling and that's mainly because the Supreme Court basically said on Monday that betting laws will be determined by each state.
"The legalization of sports gambling requires an important policy choice, but the choice is not ours to make. Congress can regulate sports gambling directly, but if it elects not to do so, each State is free to act on its own," the court wrote in its opinion. "Our job is to interpret the law Congress has enacted and decide whether it is consistent with the Constitution. PASPA is not."
With PASPA being ruled unconstitutional, Congress would literally have to start from scratch to put together a basic regulatory framework that the NFL is asking for. Since it can take ages to get any type of law passed in Congress, which the NFL seems to realize, the league said it will work with each team in the immediate future to formulate a plan for gambling.
"We also will work closely with our clubs to ensure that any state efforts that move forward in the meantime protect our fans and the integrity of our game," the league said.
The NFLPA also released a statement on the Court's decision.
"The Supreme Court's decision today reaffirms the decision to collaborate with the other sports unions on the issues of player safety, integrity of our games and privacy and publicity rights," the player's association said. "Our union will monitor developments closely and address the implications of this decision with the NFL, state legislators and other relevant stakeholders."
The NFLPA also released a statement with the NBPA, the NHLPA and the MLBPA about the same issue in April. In that statement, the groups basically said that they wanted to make sure the players in each league were going to be able to cash-in on any additional revenues any sports league might make from the gambling decision.
In the immediate future -- the next one to two years -- the NFL likely won't be making too much extra revenue from gambling. According to NFL.com, the league will first look to profit from things like "licensing, logos, videos and data."
One thing we do know is that you likely won't be able to gamble anytime soon in MOST states across the country. CBSSports.com's Will Brinson put together a nice primer on when and where you'll be able to gamble first -- Hint: Head to New Jersey -- and you can check that out by clicking here.
