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Gaming Association Adds Sports Betting to Expanded Conduct Code

Months after the Supreme Court decided a case that legalized sports betting at the state level, the American Gaming Association expanded its Code of Conduct for Responsible Gaming to reflect a careful approach to introducing legal sports betting to the public.

The American Gaming Association scored a big advocacy win earlier this year when a Supreme Court ruling legalized sports betting across the country.

And now that the rules around sports betting have been cleared up at the federal level, AGA is stepping in with some guidelines of its own on the issue. As part of its annual Responsible Gaming Education Week, the association added provisions related to sports betting to its Code of Conduct for Responsible Gaming [PDF].

Among other things, the code recommends that minors not be allowed unattended on a casino floor; that alcohol be served in moderation, and that visibly intoxicated people not be allowed to gamble; that information related to responsible gaming be made available to the public; and that advertising encourage responsible gaming, not target minors, and be in good taste. Beyond the recommendations, members are called upon to follow state and federal law.

AGA expanded many of the guidelines to incorporate sports betting and added new provisions regarding responsible advertising. The association stated in a news release that its goal is “to ensure casino and sports betting marketing is targeted to an age-appropriate demographic with tasteful content and reasonable frequency.”

Taking the Slow Approach

In regard to sports betting, AGA Senior Vice President of Public Affairs Sara Slane noted that the association has already begun working closely with sports leagues and broadcasters on the responsibilities that come with legalized gambling.

“We want to work in partnership with the larger stakeholders in the community, including the broadcasters and the leagues, to ensure that advertising that is happening around sports betting is being done responsibly,” Slane said during a recent panel discussion, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Slane added that AGA is working on launching a task force that would work on the communication issues that come with the newly legalized form of gambling—issues that have already surfaced in slightly different forms in the past.

“One of the best lessons we learned was from the mistakes that daily fantasy sports made back in 2015, certainly when it came to the issue of advertising responsibly,” she said, adding that by taking a more careful approach the gaming industry could avoid some of the problems fantasy sports faced with regulators.

(CatLane/iStock/Getty Images Plus)

Ernie Smith

By Ernie Smith

Ernie Smith is a former senior editor for Associations Now. MORE

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