Sports betting surges gambling issues in Florida

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- March Madness is here!

Tuesday begins three weeks of Men's and Women's basketball games leading up to the championship in April. And with it comes a record number of people placing bets on those games.

Since the legalization of sports betting in 2018, gambling problems have risen by 30 percent, according to the Nation Council on Problem Gambling.

In the last six years, 38 states, including Florida, have legalized some form of sports betting.

The biggest drivers of the gambling surge across the nation are sports betting apps.

These apps even have deals attracting new bettors, especially young men under the age of 35 who are the fastest growing demographic of gamblers.

Many who use them say the apps feel addictive at times.

National Council on Problem Gambling executive director Keith Whyte says having these apps on your phone plays right into one of the known risk factors in gambling, speed and frequency of play.

"I think they are a game changer," Whyte said. "It is a cocktail for people to get into problems and get into deep problems, almost overnight."

The National Helpline for Problem Gamblers is seeing an all-time high in the number of people contacting them.

In fact in Florida, calls to the state's gambling helpline more than doubled after sports betting was legalized, according to the Florida Council of Compulsive Gambling.