Billions of dollars are bet every year on sports all throughout the world, it doesn’t make sense that it is still illegal in some places in the world. Sports betting should be legal everywhere since it causes no harm as long as it is controlled.

Sports betting is something that can benefit both the government as the people. “59% of the population in Colombia, according to the studios of Coljuegos, is a player, which means that a regulation is required to allow an offer of games,” manager of the sports betting house in Colombia, Julio César Tamayo. This shows how people in countries like Colombia, more than half of the population gamble and bet money. If millions of people enjoy something, it should be legal and it should be controlled by the government.

The negatives that sports betting can have, are not even half of what sports betting can benefit the society. They estimated sports wagering could generate $100 million per year just for one state in the United States. This shows how much sports betting can do for the government if they can plan it professionally. In Colombia, more than 300 illegal sports betting places were closed. This shows it is actually possible to control betting in order to make it legal.

“I am just 16, and I bet on sports every weekend, I find it fun to bet on the teams I like,” Julian Jaramillo said . This is one thing that shouldn’t be allowed for gambling, underaged people shouldnt be allowed to bet. “We monitor sports betting in real time, and verify that there are normal bets,” Tamayo said. This shows it is possible to control betting and to evade corruption. The only other reason why sports betting is negatively affecting sports is because there is a risk that teams will fix matches in order to get some money. Even though that seems ridiculous, it happens all around the world because of illegal betting places. If betting places are controlled, the government can achieve to control who is able to bet and to control if there is strange bets.

It is ridiculous that governments around the world make sports betting, an industry that moves billions of dollar per year, illegal just because they cant control it. The benefits that this can bring to a country are much bigger than the problems it could possibly cause. It is ridiculous that there is countries around the world don’t allow sports betting and are missing out on all of the benefits.