Sports betting during this year’s March Madness might break records as more states legalize wagers on the most-anticipated tournaments in college basketball.
Adults will legally bet some $2.72 billion on the men’s and women’s NCAA basketball tournaments, which started Thursday and will run through early April, according to an estimate by the American Gaming Association. That figure does not even count wagers that were made outside of legal bookmakers, which are massive.
As sports betting becomes legal in more states every year, March Madness has been beating its previous records, and experts say that is likely again for the 2024 tournaments.
“I think it’s a pretty reasonable expectation that this year will produce record amounts of legal wagering,” Geoff Zochodne, a sports betting industry expert for Covers, told the Washington Examiner.
Zochodne, who said this year will “probably be the biggest March Madness ever” in terms of legal wagering, noted that more states have come on board and legalized betting since last year’s tournaments.
The transition toward legal sports bet …