New Study Says Sports Betting Will Work In Alabama

• A new study finds that gambling and sports betting could bring over $700 million in annual tax revenue to the state of Alabama.
• Governor Kay Ivey is open to the idea which could allow Alabama to join states like Mississippi and Tennessee in allowing legal sports betting.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The state of Alabama has just published an internal study that reveals a potential profit of $700 million if the state were to legalize certain forms of gambling, including sports, betting.

Legal forms of gaming were researched by the Governor of Alabama’s Study Group on Gambling Policy, leading to a lengthy report on the potential profits of the system.

In the report, numerous methods of gaming were researched including a state lottery, state-sponsored casinos, and forms of legal sports betting.

A lottery could net the state of Alabama up to $300 million in tax money, with casinos potentially generating up to $400 million in revenue.

Sports betting was estimated to only bring in $10 million to total revenue.

This is already a sign of evolving mindsets in a state that has been among the strictest in the country in terms of gaming law. Alabama is one of the only states without a regulated lottery, and has just a few casinos run by tribal entities.

Governor Kay Ivey is open to the idea as long as it is the decision of the people of Alabama.

“I continue to maintain the final say on gambling belongs to the people of our great state, and if and when I have a recommendation regarding a specific course of action, I will do so in full transparency to the people of Alabama, working hand-in-hand with the Alabama Legislature,” said Ivey.

The news comes on the heels of fellow border states Mississippi and Tennessee approving sports betting in recent years.

Legal sports betting in Alabama would bring a new level of entertainment to a state which is already full of devoted sports fans. The next period for Alabama to propose gaming laws would be in the 2021 legislative session, which begins on Feb. 2.

News tags: Alabama | Kay Ivey | Legal Online Gambling | Legal sports betting | Study Group