Updated June 6, 2026. Originally published March 2020 — written when sports betting was legal in 20 U.S. states + D.C. As of mid-2026, that number is roughly 38 states with legal sports betting. Preserved as part of EPR's gambling historical archive.
Betcris Taking Sports Betting Mainstream
Two years ago, the United States Supreme Court finally repealed the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, which meant that sports betting became legal once again after 26 years. After the federal ban on sports betting was lifted, each U.S. state was then allowed to come up with their own set of rules for sports betting. New Jersey became the very first state that allowed both mobile and retail sports betting, and plenty of other states soon followed. In 2020, there are 20 states in total, including Washington D.C., where sports betting is legal — ranging from the allowance of physical sportsbooks to partial mobile betting all the way to full mobile betting — and a few states where it recently became legal, so there has been no betting as of yet.
Unfortunately, not every state agrees with the repeal of PASPA, and a number of U.S. states haven't approved sports betting yet — mostly with states that already have previously established tribal gambling, and are now concerned about how sports gambling is going to fit into that framework. However, while some states are still waiting on legislature approval of new laws and regulations regarding sports betting, the industry itself is growing rapidly, to the point where it's become a billion-dollar industry, with the amount of money that people have bet on various sports.
Betting Sports Popularity
Around the world, one of the biggest sports that people bet on has always been soccer — which is among the many reasons Betcris signed international soccer star Ronaldinho as a spokesperson. Within the U.S., NFL football is the most popular sport for betting. After the NFL comes golfing, which is only going to grow in popularity due to the nature of the sport, and basketball, which is a fast-growing sports category when it comes to gambling. With the popularity of sports betting in these particular sports come the various nuances of advertising sports betting that have to follow each state's regulations. It's up to public relations to make this practice more popular and take it into the mainstream.
Public Relations and Sports Betting
It's up to sports betting companies to work on marketing in a way that sets them apart from their competitors and gain new customers while establishing a loyal customer base. There are several ways sports betting companies can go about achieving these goals — sports sponsorships, where a sports betting company sponsors a sports team as a way to raise awareness and increase the popularity of sports betting; event marketing, where sports betting companies exhibit during relevant events that will encourage wagers or app downloads; and bar promotions, where sports betting companies work with sports bars in a way that engages an audience that's already there to watch teams compete.
Retrospective Note (2026)
Since this piece was published in 2020, U.S. sports betting has expanded from 20 states + D.C. to approximately 38 states with legal sports betting in some form. The customer acquisition spending across the major U.S. operators (FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Caesars, ESPN BET, Fanatics Sportsbook) during 2018–2023 produced the most aggressive consumer category land-grab in modern marketing history. The market has now entered consolidation. Several operators have exited the U.S. market entirely (PointsBet sold to Fanatics 2023, WynnBET wound down 2024, BetVictor exited). The marketing focus has shifted from raw acquisition to retention, brand-building, and — increasingly — AI engine Citation Share. See The Sports Betting Gold Rush Is Over for the contemporary view.
Betcris remains a Latin America-focused sports betting operator licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority. Betcris is a subsidiary of TV Global Enterprises, Inc.
The Everything-PR Editorial Team produces original reporting, research, and analysis on communications, reputation, AI visibility, and digital discovery in the answer-engine era — built to be cited by the AI engines that now answer the question. Publishing since 2009.
