With sports betting in North Carolina getting an official launch date of January 2024, an immensely bright spotlight has shifted onto the future of South Carolina sports betting.
Indeed, these two states are often intertwined with their policies. That’s how it often works for direct neighbors. In this case, though, the relationship is even stronger than normal.
South Carolina doesn’t have any of their own professional sports teams. And though some residents do root for organizations in Florida and Georgia, South Carolina sports fans are most often following the franchises in North Carolina. Beyond that, many experts have identified North Carolina as the state South Carolinans will most likely travel to when attempting to bet on the sports. That segues right into the issue of squandered tax revenue. How much money will South Carolina potentially forfeit starting next year, when residents may flock to The Tar Heel State, which has legalized both retail and online sports betting?
More than a handful of industry insiders will tell you South Carolinas will likely spend millions of dollars every year betting on sports in North Carolina. And with that much money on the line, South Carolina will surely give more thoughtful consideration to the legalization of sports gambling the next time the state legislature reconvenes…right?
At least one expert on the subject isn’t so sure.
South Carolina Sports Betting is Inevitable, But is It Also Imminent?
Speaking with The Post and Courier, Stephen Shapiro, professor in the Department of Sport and Entertainment Management at the University of South Carolina, indicated that The Palmetto State may not actually feel any additional urgency to legalize sports betting. As Lamaur Stancil wrote and relayed:
[Shapiro] predicts South Carolina will eventually have legalized sports gambling, though it may be one of the last states to do so. “The state is led by Governor Henry McMaster, who campaigned against the concept in his election last year and has long said that gambling is at odds with South Carolina values.
“There’s political opposition to gambling here, with it being a more conservative state,” Shapiro said. “That’s not going to change.”
Governor McMaster has, indeed, been cited as the biggest roadblock to sports betting in South Carolina. While his opposition is multifold, many tend to believe he’s just focused on appealing to those who support him most: conservative republicans who also tend to be devoutly religious. Most assume these groups of voters are stubbornly opposed to sports gambling.
Whether this is an accurate depiction of Governor McMaster’s biggest advocates is debatable. Multiple polls conducted in other states have shown that traditionally conservative religious groups are more open to legal sports betting in all its possible forms. The state of Texas would be the most glaring example here. A study commissioned by the University of Houston earlier this year found that around 70 percent of born-again Christians, who usually identify as utlra-conservative on political issues, have no qualms with the operations of online sportsbooks in the United States.
Would it be a stretch to say South Carolina’s far-right-leaning religious groups have undergone a similar ideological transformation? Believe it or not, it just might be. At this point, a state like Texas is exposed to more liberal policies than South Carolina. The same goes for South Carolina in comparison to North Carolina. The latter has seen more left and left-adjacent officials get elected to office in recent years. That particular increase usually has a measurable impact on legal sports betting debates.
Other Experts Still Thinking South Carolina Could Legalize Sports Betting Sooner Than Some Think
It’s important to note that Shapiro’s stance is not universal. Other experts in the field are convinced North Carolina’s foray into sports betting will accelerate South Carolina’s position.
Heck, some of these experts even hail from Shapiro’s own university. Thomas H. Regan is an associate professor in the same department as Shapiro at the University of South Carolina. Professor Brian J. Mihalik, also from the University of South Carolina, predominantly teaches in the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, with a dual focus on Retail and Sports Management. Following the legalization of sports betting in North Carolina, both men believe South Carolina will now rush to join the table. Consider this excerpt from the University of South Carolina’s official website:
“‘It’s another way to increase state revenues without raising taxes," Regan says. "Like with the lottery in South Carolina, disproportionate demographics will spend money gambling. Those who benefit may not be those who spend.’ Professor Brian Mihalik believes this move could give momentum to Native American tribes in North Carolina and South Carolina hoping to see the expansion of tribal-owned casinos in both states featuring all aspects of legalized gambling including sports.”
Of course, it remains to be seen whether these views will hold up in practice. McMaster’s opposition has historically been that staunch. And as Professor Regan himself even explained, there are valid concerns. People from lower-income neighborhoods are often the ones who generate the most sports betting revenue. Staying out of the legal gambling arms race can be seen as a means of socioeconomic protection. And yet, that belief is farfetched.
Every state has grappled with this same issue. There is no solving it. Not entirely. There is also concrete data showing that refusing to legalize sports betting does not actually stop it. Gambling enthusiasts will take their business to bookies and offshore sportsbooks. That includes South Carolinians. Now, with sports betting about to be legal in the state directly above them, people in South Carolina have yet another option at their disposal. And one way or the other, this could be the development that accelerates South Carolina’s currently nonexistent sports betting timeline.
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