Interview Only w/ Danny Funt - Addicted, Unregulated, and Everywhere: The Sports Betting Explosion

Author and Washington Post contributor Danny Funt joins the Chuck ToddCast to discuss his new book “Everybody Loses”, and for a sobering, wide-ranging conversation about how the rapid legalization of sports betting quietly reshaped American sports—and not in the ways fans were promised. What began as a state-by-state experiment after a 2018 Supreme Court ruling has exploded into a highly profitable, lightly regulated industry where sportsbooks are household names, leagues are financial stakeholders, and media companies are financially dependent on gambling ads. Funt explains how gambling turbocharged media rights deals, hooked viewers more deeply into games, and became politically untouchable as companies like FanDuel and DraftKings poured money into lobbying to block even modest regulation. The discussion digs into the darker consequences that followed: inadequate funding for gambling addiction support, normalization of conspiracy talk about “rigged” games, threats and violence directed at athletes, and growing concerns about corruption—especially in individual sports and lower-profile leagues. Funt draws chilling parallels between today’s sportsbook advertising blitz and the early days of Big Tobacco, explores why American regulators ignored European guardrails, and explains how mobile betting and prediction markets have made gambling more potent and pervasive than ever. The result, he argues, is a system designed for maximum profit with minimal friction—one that has fundamentally altered how sports are watched, covered, and policed. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Danny Funt joins the Chuck ToddCast 00:30 Rapid legalization of sports betting had unintended consequences 02:00 What made you want to cover the topic of sports betting? 02:30 Leagues took a hard pivot from anti to pro gambling 04:30 Major sportsbooks are household names, but very secretive 06:00 SCOTUS paved the way for state by state gambling with 2018 ruling 06:45 Courts provided gambling legislation due to inaction by congress 08:15 Gambling creating a massive increase in value for media rights 09:45 Adding gambling was a way to further hook viewers to sports 11:15 It’s hard to add new taxes, but vice taxes are able to pass 12:30 Legal betting is far more potent than betting through a bookie 14:00 Fanduel & Draftkings throwing money into politics to avoid regulation 15:30 Even modest regulation is rigorously opposed by gambling industry 17:00 Funding for support with gambling addiction is completely inadequate 18:15 Why wasn’t there a larger debate before rolling out mobile gambling? 19:00 Mobile gambling makes so much more money than physical books 20:15 Individual sports are more corruptible than team sports 21:00 Online betting is incredibly well geofenced 22:00 Putting “friction points” into the process helps with user safety 23:30 Gambling leads to rage & violent behavior & risks player safety 25:15 Gamblers have been arrested for threats to athletes over lost bets 26:00 Fans talking about games being “rigged” has been normalized27:00 Individual players can collaborate on bets, trying to help friends 27:45 “Fixing” doesn’t necessarily mean “failing” 28:30 Prominent people in sports are alarmed & speaking out 29:30 Media won’t speak against it due to huge ad revenue from sportsbooks 32:00 NFL strongarmed reporters over concussions, gambling will be worse 35:30 Will we start regulating sports to make sure gambling is honest? 36:45 Referees in smaller, less visible conferences will be harder to police 37:15 Technology is being adopted to avoid corruptability of officials 38:45 Did writing this book change the way you watch sports? 40:30 Who controls Fanduel and Draftkings? 41:15 The leagues have equity stakes in the major sportsbooks 42:30 Major advertising similarities between tobacco and sportsbooks 43:30 What are the available gambling helpline resources/counseling like? 45:00 Stronger gambling culture in Europe, do they regulate it better? 46:00 American regulation completely ignored European precedent 47:00 Prediction markets are indistinguishable from betting markets 49:30 Legalization basically laid a trap for stupid peopleSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.