Betting markets are eroding the foundation of sports and, by extension, our identity as fans.
Graphic courtesy of The New York Times
LeBron James used to be my undisputed NBA GOAT. That changed a week ago. On September 8, LeBron announced a sponsorship deal with Polymarket, an online “prediction market.” LeBron, an ambassador of the game, did that.
The NBA fan in me said, “Abandon this guy!”
I know the term “prediction market” is meant to “sanitize” sites like Polymarket, Kalshi, and DraftKings, but everyone knows the underlying function is gambling, plain and simple, even though it’s much more than that. It’s easier to lose your money if you do business with those operations because you can bet on your phone and in the comfort of your home. My late Aunt Betty, known as the “Casino Maven,” would be amazed.
While it’s obvious that gambling is a vice, the major issue in this piece is what these gambling operations are doing to sports. Gone are the days when pro sports leagues would keep gambling at arm’s length–tolerate it, certainly, but not be formally associated with it. Today, they partner with these operations (let’s call it what it is, an industry), even to the point that multiple pro franchises (NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, WNBA) are locating in Las Vegas.
Graphic courtesy of The Athletic
All of this makes it much easier, too easy, for fans to become gambling customers.
I hear objections from people who claim they only put up a small amount of money on the table. They participate as a “fun pastime” that increases their interest in games. That’s true for many people I know personally, and it’s also true for vulnerable people who can least afford to bet on sports.
Heck, it was once true of me. I was active on Kelshi for about two months, and they were 60 days from hell. How so? I grew increasingly frustrated with each game I watched—hating players for not reaching my props and being mad that a team lost — not because I cared about the game, but because I had lost money. It got to the point where I felt I could no longer call myself a fan of the game. Instead, I was a gambler who used games as my platform for wagering.
We used to say, “Integrity in sports is really important.” How can that still be? In April 2024, NBA player Jontay Porter was banned from the NBA for sharing confidential information with sports bettors and intentionally checking out of games to make sure the bets hit. I know that’s only one example, but the underlying concern is this: when that happens, how long before we lose trust in how the game is played, the old “level playing field” concept? If that happens, then the competitive sports deck of cards will fall apart.
The growing erosion didn’t start with the pro leagues sidling up to gambling companies. It’s an extension of the never-ending quest to monetize and corporatize the game. More money begets the need for more money. Countless ads are plastered on the field and court side, streaming ads are on scoreboards, and now there are ads on backboard extension arms. Corporate names are on jerseys, long reserved for use in the PGA, are now everywhere, and that encroachment includes college play.
Prediction markets are just the newest chapter in a longer-term, regrettable trend. Many worry, including me, that it’s destroying the game because the tail is wagging the sports dog.
And that brings me back to my ex-GOAT James. There was a time when great players were admired not just for how they performed, but also for how they spoke out for the public good. Athletes like Muhammad Ali, Jackie Robinson, Kareem Abdul Jabar, Jim Brown, Bill Russell … it’s a long list. James, on the other hand, has become a corporate sellout, far removed from those predecessors who were among the most powerful political activist groups in America. Sports have been a platform to push back against social injustices, like racism and police brutality, mobilizing fans as active political participants. James? He’s a corporate shill.
It’s not just the pro leagues either. Sports media behemoth ESPN is increasingly antagonistic toward athletes whose public political messages target corporations with which the network has formal ties. They thrive on corporate money; that’s why.
So, when you think that you’re just “casually playing around and betting harmless amounts,” you are aiding and abetting what I’ve described here. In other words, you have become part of the problem, captured by the betting market industry that needs you to persist.
