New research grants to analyze the impact of sports betting across the US

• Arnold Ventures dedicated $2.6m to 12 new grants that will look into how sports betting impacts audiences across the US
• The research and analysis will look into consumer behavior and risk, how being impacts financial decisions, households and evaluate public health and social outcomes
• Justin Milner, Arnold Ventures’ Executive Vice President of Evidence and Evaluation, comments

A dozen new research grants will look into the impact of sports betting amid the ongoing expansion of the activity across the United States.

The philanthropy that supports research to understand the root causes of America’s most persistent and pressing problems, Arnold Ventures, confirmed that the 12 new grants will support an independent and rigorous analysis of the fast-growing sports betting vertical.

$2.6m dedicated to research and analysis

Notably, the research will focus on multiple areas impacted by sports betting, including financial well-being, household formation, and mental health.

Equally as important, the analysis will cover consumer behavior and suggest steps policymakers and other stakeholders can take in order to decrease at-risk and problem gambling.

Ultimately, the research is expected to provide unique insights and help policymakers better understand how the sports betting expansion across the United States is affecting constituents.

A press release from Arnold Ventures confirms that $2.6m was dedicated to supporting research and analysis.

Behavioral Insights (US) Inc., University of Wisconsin System, West Virginia University Foundation, Inc., as well as University of California, Los Angeles, will focus on advancing evidence on consumer behavior and risk.

On the other hand, Urban Institute will be tasked with informing state policy and revenue considerations, while University of Pennsylvania, Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Indiana University will focus on evaluating public health and social outcomes.

To better understand financial and household impacts, University of Wisconsin - Madison, University of New Hampshire (University System of New Hampshire), Princeton University and University of Texas at Austin will research this particular field.

Justin Milner, Arnold Ventures’ Executive Vice President of Evidence and Evaluation, spoke about the 12 new research grants.

"Just a few years ago, most Americans had to travel significant distances to legally gamble on sports. Today, access to gambling has become so widespread that, in most of the country, anyone with a smartphone could effectively have a casino in their pocket," he explained.

Moreover, Milner pointed out: "These research projects will shed light on the impacts of this new reality and help policymakers weigh important decisions about whether to legalize gambling, how to regulate it, and how to effectively reduce harm for their constituents."

After PASPA was deemed unconstitutional in 2018, sports betting has expanded across the United States.

Since then, the activity is available in most U.S. states.

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