Has Goodell Softened on Sports Betting?

Of all the sports commissioners in pro sports, Roger Goodell has been the most outspoken against legalized sports betting. In a press conference Tuesday – the day after owners voted to allow the Oakland Raiders to move to Las Vegas – he repeated his mantra. The league opposes sports betting because it threatens the integrity of the game. The league takes putting a team in Las Vegas very seriously because of legalized sports betting.

But then Goodell said something a bit out of character for him. When asked if the NFL would ask the Nevada Gaming Control Board to not allow bets on the Raiders, he said the league isn’t thinking about that at the moment.

“We’ll study it further, but I think at this point in time that’s not our position,” he said. “…in large part because you have the regulatory environment there, which actually could be beneficial in this case.”

The regulatory comment is something new for Goodell. He has never mentioned regulated sports betting as being a positive, which some of his fellow commissioners have done. If Goodell thinks it’s good for the Raiders, why not the rest of the league? That’s what legalized sports betting proponents have been arguing all along. Make it legal and above board and the games will police themselves.

Earlier during relocation talks, Goodell was asked if betting and the NFL could co-exist.

“”In fact, it does,” Goodell said. “It’s happening today. It’s sponsored by governments. It exists throughout our world. What we have always said is we need to make sure that there’s a fine line between team sports gambling and the NFL. We want to protect the integrity of our game. And that’s the line we will always do.”

Goodell knows that sports betting is taking place on the NFL. If he really wants to protect its integrity, he should realize that making it legal and out in the open is the way to go.