Former MLB commissioner Fay Vincent believes legalized sports betting in the U.S. would be "one of the biggest developments in sports since the introduction of television," and he "thinks it's coming soon," according to David Purdum of ESPN.com. Vincent said gambling is "precisely why" the sale prices of pro sports franchises are "going up." Vincent: "I've been really astonished and can't believe, with the amount of money that's going to flow to sports if gambling is permitted, that it's not a subject of interest. And no one seems to be paying attention." Vincent said that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in June to hear New Jersey's "appeal to legalize sports betting at the state's casinos and racetracks is a 'very big' case." Vincent: "I'm not a fan of betting, and I'm not minimizing the consequences." Vincent "isn't sure how various sports leagues will get a cut of legal sports betting." However, he said that the "equity investments made by MLB and the NBA into daily fantasy sports could be possible models." Vincent: "I don't know how the feds or the states are going to act, but the money will come to the leagues one way or another. It will go to the teams. The unions are going to want a cut of it. The amount of money is going to mean enormous increases in players' compensation, and officials, too; I mean the entire sporting world is going to benefit enormously" (ESPN.com, 8/4).
