Sports betting is not a new phenomenon in the United States. Americans have been gambling on sports since the early days of horse racing back in 1665, but what we are seeing today is something entirely different. Sports betting is no longer confined to casinos or racetracks, but instead it is now always available at the touch of a button. With nothing more than a cellphone and an email address, almost anyone can place a bet within seconds. What is most concerning is how aggressively sports betting is being pushed and normalized. Apps like DraftKings, FanDuel, or Caesars are constantly being promoted during sports broadcasts, on social media and even through influencers. This constant exposure creates an illusion that sports betting is harmless entertainment, while in reality it has the potential to cause serious harm to both consumers and the integrity of sports itself.
Alec Mahar, a kinesiology major at Cal State Bakersfield, has experienced with his father a sharp increase in sports betting advertisements. During a trip to the Sports Club in Las Vegas, they were heavily encouraged to download the BetMGM Sportsbook & Casino app. After downloading it, the app failed to work properly and wouldn’t accept his father’s card. This experience and many similar has led to many of them feeling unreliable or even sketchy to use.
Another concern brought up by Mahar was the issue of age restrictions. Some apps, such as BetMGM Sportsbook & Casino and Polymarket, only require users to be 18 years old to use; however, states like California require anyone participating in gambling to be over 21 years old. This creates a loophole that allows younger users to access gambling platforms with little resistance. Weak restrictions can make it easier for gambling to reach people who should not be participating in the first place.
Another student, traditional history major Mathew Forry, pointed out how sports betting apps like PrizePicks, FanDuel and DraftKings are not treated as seriously as they should be. He described them as “addictive and potentially harmful, especially the way some influencers promote them.”
Many influencers post their winnings online to their audiences, but they also hide their losses. This creates a distorted image of success, which can easily mislead younger audiences into believing sports betting is an easy way to make money.
Edgar Galvan, a public history major, shared his personal experience on how persistent these apps can be. Before our interview even began, Galvan informed me that he had already received three different sports betting advertisements that same day.
Galvan explained how these apps entice users with deals like “$20 dollar matches, which would build up to $100 matches.”
In the end, he ultimately lost more than he had gained. He later deleted the app, but Galvan continued to receive notifications saying things like “We miss you” or “We have a discount for you.” Today, Galvan knows people who will spend around $100 a week on these apps and even create group chats to share betting strategies, only roping more people into the gambling scene. What seemingly starts as a casual and fun activity can quickly turn into a dangerous financial habit.
To get a sense of the broader impact these apps are having, I spoke with Dr. Richard Gearhart, economics department chair at CSUB. According to Dr. Gearhart, most existing research on sports betting shows highly negative effects. Some of these include higher risk of addiction, alcohol abuse, mental health disorders and higher prescription rates for mental health treatment. Sports betting can also harm household disposable income and increase debt delinquency. Dr. Gearhart also explained that there is great difficulty that comes with studying sports betting, this being the problem of creating groups. Even in states that just recently legalized sports betting like North Carolina, Vermont, or Florida in Dec. 2023, people can still easily place bets across state lines using items like VPNs. The data that does exist strongly suggests that sports betting functions as what economists describe a “sin good,” which is a product that is legal but harmful to consumers, similar to alcohol, cigarettes and vaping. Unlike those industries, sports betting currently lacks strong federal regulation.
Dr. Gearhart described the issue as, “If nothing is done, this can balloon into a problem.”
There has also been a major impact on sports as well from this normalization. In Jan. 2026, 39 players in the 17 NCAA divisions were caught fixing games or entire seasons due to sports gambling. This was reported by ESPN in an article by David Purdum on Jan. 15, 2026, titled “Many College Players Among Cozens Charged in Point-Shaving Plot.” Which reported that several college athletes were bribed with amounts reaching $30,000 to intentionally underperform and manipulate games. The normalization of sports betting is not just affecting ordinary people but it has also begun infecting the entertainment we watch and root for.
The normalization of sports betting is happening slowly but surely each year, with many people not noticing. When gambling is marketed like entertainment and success stories are constantly highlighted, it can become easy to miss or ignore the risks. But behind the advertisements and rewards, real people are getting hurt. Whether that be losing money, developing addictions, or games being manipulated to influence rewards.
