As it marks the one-year anniversary of its fight against illegal gambling, the American Gaming Association has announced the launch of a new campaigning website – StopIllegalGambling.org – which will serve as an information hub for players and stakeholders.
The effort is a component of AGA’s “Stop Illegal Gambling – Play it Safe” initiative which is uniting gaming and law enforcement to expose the massive illegal gambling market that it says preys on consumers, siphons tax revenues, funds violent crime and threatens the integrity of sports.
In what the American Gaming Association describes as the “large and growing illegal sports betting market” – estimated to be upwards of 80 percent of all illegal gambling in the United States – consumer protections are currently non-existent and law enforcement lacks tools to protect the integrity of games.
But then, some analysts are arguing, it would say this, wouldn’t it? After all, the threat that sportsbetting poses to its casino-dominated membership is at the very heart of the association’s growing concerns of late with the old, established but very mighty AGA under fire on many fronts at the moment. Not only are the emerging gaming markets such as igaming and sportsbetting stinging the AGA like annoying wasps, but further afield in Macau, the gambling capital of the world where the AGA has previously reigned unchallenged on the profitable exhibition roster for over a decade, it now finds itself up against the growing domestic trade association which has been running its own gaming show in the city.
Not surprisingly, the AGA has come out fighting on its own doorstep with its new website – StopIllegalGambling.org – part of an effort to fill this void by housing the latest AGA news, articles, videos, research, partners and upcoming training related to the initiative.
After launching the antiillegal gambling initiative last April in Biloxi before a gathering of state attorney generals from across the country, AGA formed the Illegal Gambling Advisory Board, composed of former top officials with diverse law enforcement backgrounds. On the ongoing partnership, Tim Murphy, advisory board chair and former FBI deputy director, said: “Addressing the issue of illegal gambling requires collaborative engagement with key stakeholders to raise awareness, enhance training, review existing laws and prioritize available resources to help combat illegal gambling in whatever form it exists.”
As part of the ongoing campaign, the AGA will also host a major law enforcement summit in June to further strengthen the partnership between the gaming industry and all elements of the law enforcement community.
