New Nebraska Coalition Forms to Oppose Online Sports Betting

While Nebraska sports betting proponents succeeded in putting legalization on the November ballot, the fight is far from over.

Yesterday, a new coalition named Save Nebraska Sports (SNS) announced it will launch at the state Capitol today. The group includes current and former state officials, as well as several former Cornhuskers coaches. Its sole purpose is to encourage voters to reject two proposals to legalize online sports betting during this fall’s midterm elections.

The group will oppose Tax Relief Nebraska (TRN), which helped put the industry on the ballot. It has not yet released a statement about forming a new rival.

Officials Call TRN’s Bluff

During the announcement, SNS auditor Mike Foley warned that TRN is intentionally misleading residents into supporting legalization.

As state auditor, I feel an obligation to inform the cities you're being scammed with a false promise of property tax relief, which is very sensitive to you. False promise of getting tax relief when you're not going to get it.

TRN has estimated that legalization would lead to $87 million in property tax relief. However, SNS claims the group refuses to share the data behind the estimate. According to their own calculation, Nebraska bettors would need to lose over $430 million to reach that number.

Protecting College Athletes

While the group’s politicians focused on the financial impact, the coaches trumpeted the impact sports betting has on college athletes. 

According to a study conducted by the NCAA, 36% of men’s college basketball players have experienced harassment on social media. It comes from angry bettors looking for someone to blame for their losses. Anonymity makes them feel they can criticize or threaten without repercussions. 

During SNS’s announcement, the group read a statement from former Nebraska Cornhusker football coach Tom Osborne on the issue.

As a coach, I saw firsthand the immense pressure student athletes face. Some of the harshest criticism athletes receive is not for losing, but for failing to beat a point spread or reach a certain number of yards, completions, or touchdowns. Online sports gambling turns an athletic contest into a gambling exercise with someone else's money riding on the performance of young men and women.

SCOTUS Could Change Nebraska Fight

While both groups have begun their campaigns ahead of November’s election, the county’s sports betting industry may not look the same by then.

Last week, the first lawsuit over the legality of sports prediction markets was sent to the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) for review. If it takes the case, as expected, it will determine whether the controversial offering remains immune from state gambling laws and taxes.

If prediction markets prevail, it means all Nebraska residents 18+ will have easy access to legal sports betting. As a result, rejecting the creation of a regulated state market would lose merit. Instead, the state would need the market to help secure tax revenue to fund problem gambling resources.

If SCOTUS sides with the states and declares sports markets as a form of sports betting, it would allow Nebraska to extend its betting ban to the industry. This would end fears that sports betting is already rampant in the state and could help boost SNS’s campaign.