Losing Big: America's Reckless Bet on Sports Gambling by Jonathan D. Cohen

Losing Big: America's Reckless Bet on Sports Gambling

by Jonathan D. Cohen

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Business & FinanceSociety & Culture

Legal sports betting is a big, popular business: about one in five American adults bet on sports in 2023, $121 billion in all. That said, Cohen's case is that the addiction crisis you're seeing was a policy choice, with sportsbook lobbying shaping state rules that put operator profits ahead of bettors.

Core ideas
  • Two apps dominate: FanDuel and DraftKings run the market with mobile apps built on dynamic pricing and personalized targeting.
  • Concentrated harm: About 3 percent of adults are moderate-risk or problem gamblers, and roughly one in five aged 18 to 24 is at elevated risk.
  • Treat it as public health: Told partly through bettors like one who lost $300,000, it's an emerging crisis, and Cohen lays out remedies before it spreads further.
Published2025
Pages192
ISBN9798987053706
ReadOct 2025

Connected to 4 other books

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