Survey: 1-in-5 have online sports betting accounts

Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - A new joint survey by St. Bonaventure University and Siena College finds 39% of Americans bet on sports, while 19% have a sports betting app to gamble on games.

"I think it just shows how incredibly fast-growing and how incredibly popular sports betting online sports betting has become in the past few years," says Brian Moritz of St. Bonaventure.

Moritz says that's big, considering sports gambling has only been legal since 2019, and it's not legal in every state. It's currently only legal in about 30 states across the country.

The rise in sports betting also brings a rise of concerns, according to Moritz. He notes nearly 40% of betters themselves have felt bad about their gambling, or they've bet more than they should. And almost 20% have lost money they needed, or have lied to about someone they're betting.

"I think what you're seeing is people who are gambling, they do it sometimes and feel bad about themselves. They're kind of almost conflicted feelings about it," added Moritz.

When it comes to betting on Sunday's Big Game, Moritz says accessibility to sports gambling online is why you'll see billions bet on the Super Bowl.

"You don't have to go to a casino, you don't have to go into a sports book. You can be watching the game and bet live on things that are happening as they happen. There's almost nothing you can't bet on, especially around the Super Bowl," said Moritz.

Moritz adds the leagues have done a decent job with the PSAs during games and during commercial breaks, urging gamblers to not chase bets and bet safely.

"I think that's valuable, and I think that kind of education and kind of guardrails on these are something I think could help sports fans and people watching the games from taking something that is fun and that you can have a little bit of fun with from crossing over into something that becomes more problematic," Moritz said.

The Super Bowl takes place this Sunday in Las Vegas.