![]() This ban came after a 2019 study by the United Kingdom Gambling Commission found “22% of online gamblers using credit cards (were) problem gamblers, with even more suffering some form of gambling harm. ”Īnd in Great Britain, where online sports betting has been legalized and widely available for much longer, the use of credit cards was banned in 2020. But in a 2021 study on general credit card spending, MIT’s Sloan School of Management found that by reducing the pain of payment, “(credit cards) ‘step on the gas’ by driving motivation to spend. is so new, data is scarce on the exact impact of credit card use for American gamblers. Yet he stopped short of noting any specific correlation between problem gambling and credit card use, citing a lack of research.īecause legal online sports betting in the U.S. “Using a credit card for gambling is definitely higher risk,” said Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling. ![]() Of the $15.5 billion total expected wager on this year’s March Madness, it’s unknown what fraction will be placed using credit cards, though betting operators argue that it’s a relatively small percentage. Of those, only a handful specifically prohibit the use of credit cards to fund bets. Since the 2018 overturn of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, which lifted a 26-year federal ban on online sports betting, more than 35 states have legalized the practice in some form. But because online sports betting has become so accessible, many more may walk the same road. He knew he needed help, and has since joined Gamblers Anonymous and registered for a debt recovery program. Finally, after a crushing late-night loss on a particularly big bet, Matt confessed it all to his wife. That hot streak never came, though, and the credit card debt piled up. “I legitimately thought that I was going to start to get on a hot streak and win it all back.” Monopoly money,” Cappelen said.Įach month, he used gambling winnings to make the next minimum payment on his credit cards, never worrying about how he would repay the debt. “You feel like you’re playing with fake money or play money. Up to 90% of that, he says, was done on credit cards. ![]() But in the three years since, Cappelen built up $83,000 in gambling debts on sites like Bovada and FanDuel.
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