Gambling Now Underpins the Entire US Economy and Is Extremely Addictive

The Gambling Economy: How mass-scale betting became a dangerous and addictive pillar of U.S. financial growth.

by Breaking Points, TEDx and Reuters

The American Gaming Association reported a 23.6% rise in sports betting in the United States in 2024, with Americans placing $147.9 billion in sports bets. Gambling releases dopamine in the brain, whether the bettor wins or loses. The suicide rate for those with a gambling addiction is 12 times higher than that of any other addiction.

According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report from 2019 to 2024, the second fastest growing sector in America in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) growth was gambling! That means that outside of AI data center GDP growth, the second largest growing thing in our economy is now gambling. Gambling companies have now overtaken motion picture revenue in terms of the amount that people are spending. It is by far the largest entertainment product now here in the United States. It emerged literally from a Supreme Court decision. There is zero oversight and it is the source of massive addiction – it is beyond corrupt!

Polymarket is a cryptocurrency-based prediction market. It allows individuals to place bets on future events such as economic indicators, weather patterns, awards, as well as political and legislative outcomes

Patrick Chester shares his personal experience of the silent addiction of gambling, the impact on others, the consequences, and the steps to recovery. The brain science regarding this addiction is intriguing and highlights the difficulty of recovery.

From Reuters February 2025:

Americans are gambling on sports in record numbers, which has coincided with a rapid increase in the number of people turning to support for serious gambling addictions.

The American Gaming Association reported a 23.6 percent rise in sports betting in the United States in 2024, with Americans placing $147.9 billion in sports bets.

Several states reported massive increases in sports betting over the past year. Massachusetts saw it sports betting revenue rise 40 percent, while Illinois overtook New Jersey as the No. 2 state for sports betting revenue behind only New York.

Along with the skyrocketing dollars Americans are spending on sports betting has come an increase in the rates of gambling addiction — and the services available to those who are seeking help.

It has been seven years since the Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), clearing the way for legalized sports betting throughout the United States. Some form of sports betting is now available in 38 states along with the District of Columbia.

As accessibility has increased, so, too, has the popularity and normalization of sports betting across the country. Gambling-specialized treatment provider Birches Health told Field Level Media on Friday that there have been “notable findings in the past year around the societal impacts, including rates of gambling addiction.”

Among states that release public reports around call volume to their gambling hotlines, Virginia saw a 973 percent increase in the number of helpline callers between 2019-2023, while Florida reported a 138 percent rise in outreach during the state’s first two months after sports betting was made available.

New Jersey reported a 277 percent increase in helpline outreach since the state legalized sports betting in 2018. The state now allows online casino games. According to Birches, the gambling addiction rate in New Jersey-based males between 18-20 years old is around 10 percent — the national average is approximately 3 percent.

Along with the increase in addiction, recent research suggests that legalized gambling has led to increases in irresponsible spending, bankruptcy rates related to gambling debts and higher rates of criminal activity, including intimate partner violence.

“We’ve recently seen an alarming influx of young male bettors across the U.S. seeking assistance for serious gambling problems,” Birches Health founder Elliott Rapaport told Field Level Media. “Even in states where sports betting has not been legalized, they are easily finding ways to bet on sports and play online casino games using unregulated platforms, which of course is very concerning.”

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