What Is Gambling ?

When I was a kid , I thought I knew what gambling was . I think my first brush with gambling came when I was growing up in Brooklyn . My uncle used to send me down to the corner store with a couple of bucks and a slip of paper to give to the guy who ran the candy store to play the numbers .

One day I asked him how he knew whether he won or lost , and he took out the Daily News and opened it to the horse racing results from Aqueduct . The last three digits of “ the handle ”— the amount race track bettors placed on all the races that day — were the winning numbers . He didn ’ t win too often .

Later , someone from the neighborhood would take a ride to New Hampshire and pick up a pile of tickets for the lottery ; New Hampshire was the only state at that time to offer that kind of betting . Now every state has a lottery — except Nevada , Alabama and Utah , a strange trio .

We knew about Las Vegas , of course , that strange city in the middle of the desert with a questionable reputation . I clearly remember going to the original Oceans 11 movie — in a drive-in theater — and becoming fascinated with that place — and the Rat Pack !

Later , my family moved to the D . C . area . When I was in eighth grade , we went to an amusement park called Marshall Hall on the banks of the Potomac River in Maryland . I wandered out onto a pier there , and in a locked hall on the pier were hundreds of slot machines .

It was the first time I saw a real slot , and I wondered why the hall wasn ’ t open . Later , I found out that southern Maryland , especially the town of Waldorf , was like a mini-Las Vegas with slots and tables . These gambling dens operated sporadically depending upon who they could bribe to stay open .

So it was pretty clear to me early on what gambling was . Maybe my interest in matching baseball cards should have qualified , but that didn ’ t involve real money , so maybe not . And I ruined so many cards that would have been very valuable later on in life by tossing them against the wall or clipping them to my bike spokes to make it sound like a motorcycle .

And just until a few years ago , I was pretty clear about what gambling was . When online gambling became a thing , it didn ’ t change my perspective . You were risking money to win money ; it was just electronic . But then sweepstakes casinos arrived .

Proponents told me it ’ s not really gambling , it ’ s just taking a chance ! You don ’ t have to put up money to win ! But what about gold vs . sweepstakes coins that you bought with real money ? You can actually get paid with real money if you win a jackpot wagering sweepstakes coins , but really anyone could win . My head was spinning with that explanation . And now we have “ prediction markets .” We began to notice them during the recent presidential election . After it was over , the participants bragged that their “ predictions ” about Donald Trump ’ s victory were more accurate than the professional pollsters . Isn ’ t this also gambling ?

If it is , it ’ s approved by government entities like the U . S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission , because with the prediction markets the gambler buys a type of financial instrument known as an event contract . Lots of companies are jumping into the prediction market . Kalshi was all over the presidential election and recently hired Donald Trump Jr . as an adviser . Crypto . com just announced they are going to offer “ sports event trading ” in all 50 states .

To be honest , Wall Street has been a gambling mecca since it launched in the mid-1800s . Lots of gambling addicts were hooked on stock trading long before gambling ever became legal .

Bottom line , however : Gambling is when someone puts money up and bets on an outcome . It ’ s a risk . Whether it ’ s the turn of a card , the spin of a wheel , the roll of dice , a pull of the handle , the result of a sporting event or any other predictable event , or the belief that the value of a certain stock is going to rise , it ’ s still gambling . And gambling can be fixed by people who have dubious intentions .

That ’ s why we have regulations , we have licensing , we have oversight . And if some loophole allows people or organizations to avoid that scrutiny , that loophole needs to be closed . It ’ s gambling , after all , and it needs to be controlled by honest , transparent , trustworthy people and agencies .

Vol . 24 • No . 2 • FEBRUARY 2025

Roger Gros , Publisher | rgros @ ggbmagazine . com X : @ GlobalGamingBiz

Frank Legato , Editor | flegato @ ggbmagazine . com X : @ FranklySpeakn

Jess Marquez , Managing Editor jmarquez @ ggbmagazine . com

Monica Cooley , Art Director mcooley @ ggbmagazine . com

Terri Brady , Sales & Marketing Director tbrady @ ggbmagazine . com

Beck Kingman-Gros , Associate Publisher & COO bkingros @ ggbmagazine . com

Lisa Johnson , Communications Advisor lisa @ lisajohnsoncommunications . com X : @ LisaJohnsonPR

Columnists Frank Fantini | Joe Maloney

EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Rino Armeni , President , Armeni Enterprises

• Dike Bacon , Principal / Partner , HBG Design

• Lauren Bates , President , Global Gaming Women

• Mark A . Birtha , Senior Vice President & General Manager , Hard Rock International

• Brendan Bussmann , Principal , BGlobal Advisors

• Alex Dixon , CEO , DRA / Q Casino

• Daron Dorsey , Executive Director , Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers

• Sally Gainsbury , Director at Gambling Treatment & Research Clinic & Professor of Psychology , University of Sydney

• Stephen Martino , Vice President & Chief Compliance Officer , MGM Resorts International

• Bill Miller , President and CEO , American Gaming Association

• Walt Power , CEO , Grand Ho Tram

• Rob Russell , Senior Gaming Analyst , Regulatory Management Counselors PC

• James Siva , Chairman , California Nations Indian Gaming Association / Vice Chairman , Morongo Band of Mission Indians

• Michael Soll , President , The Innovation Group

• Kresimir Spajic , Chief Executive Officer , Betfred Sportsbook

• Katherine Spilde , Executive Director , Sycuan Gaming Institute , San Diego State University —————— GGB Magazine 1000 Nevada Way • Suite 204 • Boulder City , NV 89005 702-248-1565 • 702-248-1567 ( fax ) www . ggbmagazine . com

The views and opinions expressed by the writers and columnists of GLOBAL GAMING BUSINESS are not necessarily the views of the publisher or editor .

GLOBAL GAMING BUSINESS is published monthly by Clarion Gaming International , LLC . Printed in Nevada , USA . Postmaster : Send Change of Address forms to : 1000 Nevada Way , Suite 204 , Boulder City , NV 89005 Email : subscriptions @ ggbmagazine . com

Official Publication

4 Global Gaming Business FEBRUARY 2025

GGB Magazine February 2025 | Page 6

THE AGENDA

What Is Gambling ?

When I was a kid , I thought I knew what gambling was . I think my first brush with gambling came when I was growing up in Brooklyn . My uncle used to send me down to the corner store with a couple of bucks and a slip of paper to give to the guy who ran the candy store to play the numbers .