Ole Miss Announces College Gambling Center As Concerns Rise Over

The University of Mississippi on Monday announced the upcoming launch of its brand-new Center on Collegiate Gambling, which researchers describe as the "first of its kind in the country" in the middle of increasing national issue about banking on college sports.


The center was authorized by the Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees in February and will cost about $700,000 a year. It was developed to study the "increased threats" for college trainees and student athletes brought on by the rapid development of legalized sports betting and online gaming, its creators stated. Researchers stated the center will now start employing personnel.


IHL ´ s approval of the center follows the release of study results by University of Mississippi researchers showing that 39% of Mississippi college trainees bet in a variety of formats in the past year. Of those who engaged in sports wagering, 6% of Mississippi college trainees for problem gaming as defined by the American Psychiatric Association.


"We truly think that this is an issue that impacts Mississippi at big," Hannah Allen-King, executive director of the university ´ s William Magee Institute for Student Wellbeing and assistant professor of public health, said in a press release. "And so, we ´ re attempting to deal with our lawmakers as they dispute policy change around betting in the state."


Commercial sports betting was efficiently banned with a couple of exceptions till 2018, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a 1992 prohibition. Mississippi permits sports betting now, however only inside casinos.


After the 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision, sports gambling business launched a full-court press lobbying project to bring sports betting to 10s of countless mobile phones around the country, an effort reported to be the fastest expansion of legalized betting in American history. The companies have poured cash into lobbying state lawmakers, including those in Mississippi.


But Mississippi has actually remained among the couple of holdout states, mostly due to fears that legalization could damage the bottom line of the state ´ s casinos and increase the prevalence of gambling addiction. That hasn ´ t stopped a flourishing black market from taking hold in the state.


In 2024, unlawful online betting in Mississippi made up about 5% of the nationwide illegal market, which is about $3 billion in prohibited bets in Mississippi, advocates stated that year. Supporters of legalization state people will put online sports wagers despite whether the practice is legal, so the state needs to control and tax it.


The state House has voted, for the third year in a row, to legalize mobile sports betting throughout the continuous 2026 legislative session. But Senate leaders have stated they prepare to let the measure pass away once again.


Nevertheless, college campuses have actually ended up being hubs of activity for sports betting and, significantly, betting addiction. This has triggered calls for research study into mobile sports wagering ´ s development and effect on young grownups. The brand-new center will aim to produce such research, which its founders state is lacking without a national proving ground in the U.S. devoted exclusively to the study of collegiate betting.


The academic research will concentrate on college trainee betting behaviors ranging from card games to proposal betting and forecast markets. The center will also promote "evidence-based policies and programs to avoid harm," including training counselors to help students dealing with betting.


Eight University of Mississippi counselors have already received the certification to much better equip them to determine betting addiction in students, the scientists stated.


The rise of college gambling has likewise caused increased risks directed at professional athletes, whose performance is now carefully tracked by gamblers.


"In a state like Mississippi where we put on ´ t have a great deal of expert sports groups, college sports are such a big part of our culture, and a big part of our state population follows and appreciates college sports," Allen-King said. "We ´ ve seen that it can affect the psychological health of student-athletes who are getting threatened and bugged since people are losing money due to the fact that of their efficiency during video games.


Daniel Durkin, an associate professor of social work who is likewise among the center ´ s establishing members, said raising awareness of sports gambling ´ s prevalence on college schools will be a central objective.


"Part of the concern today is everybody ´ s just having fun," Durkin said. "Take a look at the advertisements; betting ´ s fun. Everybody ´ s doing it. The seriousness of the issues has not really pertain to the leading edge yet, but it ´ s just a matter of time."


This story was originally published by Mississippi Today and distributed through a collaboration with The Associated Press.