Student Athletes/Gambling
My apologies if this is not an original idea. I noticed that some states considering legalizing sports gambling are drawing the line at college sports. You would be allowed to gamble on an NBA game, but not an NCAA game. An idea in the “Should student athletes get paid” conversation, whatever non-professional sport events/activities a state deems “gambling worthy,” the participants in that event/activity are eligible to receive a fraction of the revenue generated from wagers made at authorized Books on that event. That fraction of revenue gets divided among athletes attending institutions from states where that activity is “gambleable.”
You could do it as a percentage of money taken in on the event by the Books, or charge the gambler a small tax with any bet. You would not make it tied to how much the Book won or lost on the event as obviously this would have shaving implications. This would be a federal statute that once a state permits gambling on a specific non-professional athletic event, this tax or juice would have to be incorporated. This would maintain the power of the legislature in deciding which events are gambling permissible, it would add zero costs to schools/universities, and it would be a legalized, supervisable way to pay athletes. This would also solve the dilemma “does the backup center for Bucknell get paid the same as Johnny Manziel.” Answer, he does, if his game generates as much gambling action as Manziel’s (It will not).
Who among us hasnt kicked back with a beverage on a mid-Summer afternoon and gambled on a Little League World Series game? If a state deems it worthy that a Little League game was “gambleable,” then yes, a portion of those wagers would be divided among those athletes.
Alabama plays UCLA in NCAAF. Alabama has decided gambling on NCAAF is not permitted. California has decided it is permitted. The tax or juice collected from legal bets made at registered books on the event throughout the United States are divided among the UCLA athletes.
