Sports leagues want gambling ban upheld

WASHINGTON — The four major professional sports leagues and the National Collegiate Athletic Association are asking members of the House Financial Services Committee to oppose legislation by their chairman, U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, that would repeal an Internet gambling ban.

In an April 25 letter, officials from the leagues urge the committee to “reject proposals to reverse itself on this issue.”

The committee approved the ban in March 2006 by voice vote. In July, the House voted 317-93 to pass the ban.

“Our sports organizations each have strict policies against sports betting because wagering on sports can corrupt athletic contests or create the appearance of corruption,” the letter said.

The Hill, a newspaper that covers Congress, reported the letter came from Martin Gold, a lobbyist for the National Football League.

A call and e-mail to Gold were not returned Tuesday. Before working for the NFL, Gold was a counsel to former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., who attached the ban to a port security bill last year to win congressional approval.

In addition to the NFL and the NCAA, the letter is signed by officials from the National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball and the National Hockey League.

Frank criticized the letter.

“They have a right to their point of view, but this is arrogance on their part,” said Frank, D-Mass. “We’ve offered an exemption for sports leagues in our bill if they don’t want people to bet on their games. They’re trying to prevent people from doing what they want to do.”

The letter says the leagues would oppose an exemption from the ban for poker players.

“If online poker or lotteries or other forms of restrictions are legalized, a major trading partner such as the European Union may be able to get the WTO (World Trade Organization) to rule against all U.S. gambling restrictions,” the letter said.

Meanwhile, Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., plans to introduce a bill Thursday that would require a one-year study of Internet gambling by the National Academy of Sciences.

Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., who introduced similar legislation last year, is co-sponsoring Berkley’s bill.

Berkley said Tuesday that “online wagering is here to stay” and should be regulated.

“As always, the NFL and other leagues are sticking their heads in the sand,” Berkley said. “Congressman Frank is absolutely doing the right thing by correcting this ridiculous legislation.”

After meeting Friday in Las Vegas, the board of directors of the American Gaming Association — the chief lobbying group in Washington for casinos — issued a cautious statement praising Frank’s “efforts to examine the issue of Internet gambling.”

“Initially, the AGA opposed Internet gambling due to our concern that the technology did not exist to regulate with strict law enforcement oversight,” the association’s statement said. “Over the last decade, great strides have been made in this area and it is increasingly evident that protections can be put in place that would help make this popular activity safe.”