The AGA and the ECA Team Up to Fight Illegal Gambling
In early February 2016 the American Gaming Association (AGA) and the European Casino Association (ECA) announced they formed a partnership to share information and resources to fight the menace of illegal gambling.
Both organizations work in conjunction with law enforcement and the legal gaming industry. “The problem of illegal gambling services is of a global dimension,” said ECA chair Per Jaldung. He added the regulators wished to protect consumers, prevent underage persons from gambling and keep gambling free of crime.
During 2014, Interpol’s Operation SOGA V targeted illegal gambling around the World Cup. It found organized crime made not only the expected the enormous profits, but that the illegal sports event gambling was connected with corruption, money laundering, and human trafficking. A criminologist from Virginia Commonwealth University, Dr. Jay Albanese, demonstrated strong connections between illegal gambling and large criminal organizations. As part of AGA’s “Stop Illegal Gambling – Play it Safe” program, Dr. Albanese analyzed 80 federal cases.
Gambling is regulated by state and local laws, which vary greatly. In the last fifty years, legal gambling has become much more widespread. However, all states outlaw some forms of gambling. Even Nevada, which has had legalized casino gambling ever since the establishment of Las Vegas, bans state lotteries. Many jurisdictions now allow casinos, or state lotteries, or poker rooms, or Indian gaming, or horse racing tracks. Almost as soon as the Internet became publicly available, virtual casinos came online. Millions of people around the world who had no access to legal, offline brick and mortar casinos, suddenly could use a credit card to gamble in the privacy of their bedroom.
It’s now illegal for anyone to accept sports and casino bets on a server located in the United States. Therefore, online casinos operate in countries where such activity is legal. However, the federal government maintains that it’s still illegal for those online casinos to accept bets from U.S. players. Plus, it’s considered illegal for mass media in the U.S. to accept advertising from online casinos. It’s also illegal for banks to transfer funds. Therefore, U.S. players who wish to lay their money down face the problem of how to get money to the virtual casino operating in another country. And, if they’re lucking, how to collect their winnings.
The AGA is the national trade group for the casino industry in the United States. Its members include commercial casinos, Native American casinos, suppliers and others associated with legal gaming. Similarly, ECA represents national associations and 900 legal land-based casinos in Europe.
The partnership between AGA and ECA is based on four principles: the enhanced sharing of information, the reduction of the demand for and the supply of illegal gambling services, cooperation with law enforcement and calling on governments to take action against illegal gambling.
One major form of illegal gambling is sports wagering. The AGA estimates over $130 billion is wagered on sports illegally just in the United States. Yet, sports wagering is illegal in 46 states.
