The unofficial “godfather” of U.S. online sports betting admits that the industry has become “a little bit disturbing.”
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who led efforts to overturn the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that the industry’s growth since 2018 has been troubling.
Legal online sportsbooks won more than $16 billion from bettors in 2025, and the legal industry appears to have helped normalize the offshore market alongside it. Americans are losing record sums gambling on sports.
“I don’t think I could ever have anticipated that it [sports betting] would be in everybody’s pocket,” Christie said of state-sanctioned sports gambling. “That’s a little bit disturbing to me, to tell you the truth, the proliferation of it.”
According to a 2026 Siena Research Institute survey, more than a quarter (27%) of Americans have an active online sports betting account, and 60% of online sports bettors chase losses, a core sign of a potential problem. Legal sports betting has also been linked to anger issues among men and family food insecurity.
Just last month, former U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said sports betting is the “new opioid crisis.”
Despite his admission, Christie still supports state-sanctioned sports gambling. He is currently leading a fight, on behalf of the American Gaming Association, against prediction markets, a form of stock-market-style sports gambling that the CFTC has overseen since 2025 and which states, including New Jersey, argue is illegal.
Check out GamblingHarm.org’s analysis of Christie’s recent comments:
