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CU becomes first NCAA school to partner with sports betting company

My understanding was online betting was legal in New Jersey.....Michigan's trying to move up their start as well because of the restrictions on how many people can be in a casino at one time for COVID.
I believe it is in NJ, but I think I read that college athletic betting is still illegal there.
 
The linked article I attached above addresses a lot of this.

However, believing sports betting is immoral or "bad optics" is a personal belief. Wall street is one of the most morally corrupt entities in the world, yet I'd guess both you and Jens would have a different take if some stocks broker company was a sponsor of CU athletics.

Do you consider the lottery immoral? The Colorado lottery pushes millions of dollars back to Colorado Parks. Is that a bad thing? You talk a lot about using state and national parks, both of which have been enhanced because of "gambling".

You don’t know me at all if you think I have any time for the stock market.
 
The linked article I attached above addresses a lot of this.

However, believing sports betting is immoral or "bad optics" is a personal belief. Wall street is one of the most morally corrupt entities in the world, yet I'd guess both you and Jens would have a different take if some stocks broker company was a sponsor of CU athletics.

Do you consider the lottery immoral? The Colorado lottery pushes millions of dollars back to Colorado Parks. Is that a bad thing? You talk a lot about using state and national parks, both of which have been enhanced because of "gambling".
I don’t think gambling is any more immoral than drinking or getting high. There is a concern that sports gambling leads to all sorts of unethical actions—point shaving for example. That’s a real concern, but not inevitable.

In any case, people will always bet on sports, whether it’s legal or not.
 
You don’t know me at all if you think I have any time for the stock market.
I don't. Just making sure you have the same morally corrupt thought process of just about every large athletic organization in the world.
 
I don’t think gambling is any more immoral than drinking or getting high. There is a concern that sports gambling leads to all sorts of unethical actions—point shaving for example. That’s a real concern, but not inevitable.

In any case, people will always bet on sports, whether it’s legal or not.
Yes. It's like people who voted against A64 here in CO and still believe MJ is some bigly awful thing
 
I don’t think gambling is any more immoral than drinking or getting high. There is a concern that sports gambling leads to all sorts of unethical actions—point shaving for example. That’s a real concern, but not inevitable.

In any case, people will always bet on sports, whether it’s legal or not.
Agreed. I think you could point to just about any professional sporting franchise or university who made a partnership at one point in time with an organization who someone else would consider "immoral".
 
The linked article I attached above addresses a lot of this.

However, believing sports betting is immoral or "bad optics" is a personal belief. Wall street is one of the most morally corrupt entities in the world, yet I'd guess both you and Jens would have a different take if some stocks broker company was a sponsor of CU athletics.

Do you consider the lottery immoral? The Colorado lottery pushes millions of dollars back to Colorado Parks. Is that a bad thing? You talk a lot about using state and national parks, both of which have been enhanced because of "gambling".
I used to believe that a lottery was a "voluntary tax" and had no issue with it. I even encouraged it, although I've never in my life purchased a lottery ticket (because math, not morals).

Then I learned that this voluntary tax is almost completely funded by the poorest and most uneducated segment of our society. I now think it's less moral.

Regarding casino and sports gambling, I live in Gilpin County -- the only place in CO with casino gambling. For the last six years, I've paid far less taxes, far less, than my next door neighbor who lives in Boulder County. I had no issues with this, although I've never gambled in any of the casinos (because math, not morals). Side note: Gilpin is now coming after us homeowners in a big way to make up for lost revenue during the lockdown.

In the general question of "if the money benefits what I like, does the end justify the means?". well, I said above if it personally benefits me I'll at least turn a blind eye.

I don't personally have a problem with anyone who chooses to gamble. I do have a problem with systems that disproportionately prey on uneducated and poor people, whether by design or accident.

And.... I still think it's bad optics for a university.
 
I believe there is also gaming in Teller County, specifically Cripple Creek.

I audited casinos in Black Hawk, Central City and Cripple Creek before I retired.

Because of what I learned about the odds, etc., I do not gamble.
 
I used to believe that a lottery was a "voluntary tax" and had no issue with it. I even encouraged it, although I've never in my life purchased a lottery ticket (because math, not morals).

Then I learned that this voluntary tax is almost completely funded by the poorest and most uneducated segment of our society. I now think it's less moral.

Regarding casino and sports gambling, I live in Gilpin County -- the only place in CO with casino gambling. For the last six years, I've paid far less taxes, far less, than my next door neighbor who lives in Boulder County. I had no issues with this, although I've never gambled in any of the casinos (because math, not morals). Side note: Gilpin is now coming after us homeowners in a big way to make up for lost revenue during the lockdown.

In the general question of "if the money benefits what I like, does the end justify the means?". well, I said above if it personally benefits me I'll at least turn a blind eye.

I don't personally have a problem with anyone who chooses to gamble. I do have a problem with systems that disproportionately prey on uneducated and poor people, whether by design or accident.

And.... I still think it's bad optics for a university.
Fair enough.

Do you think its bad optics because CU is the first School to do so? Would you have this same take if they were the 20th School to ink a similar deal a few years down the road? I think most people's thoughts around this is because sports gambling in general is still so new (other than NJ and NV).

I don't have any problem with someone thinking this, but that is their personal opinion. However, to think a university inking a deal with a gambling company is the devil but turning a blind eye to a university or even a professional franchise for having sponsorship dollars who do the same with a company in a less discrete way is a little disingenuous to me.
 
I used to believe that a lottery was a "voluntary tax" and had no issue with it. I even encouraged it, although I've never in my life purchased a lottery ticket (because math, not morals).

Then I learned that this voluntary tax is almost completely funded by the poorest and most uneducated segment of our society. I now think it's less moral.

Regarding casino and sports gambling, I live in Gilpin County -- the only place in CO with casino gambling. For the last six years, I've paid far less taxes, far less, than my next door neighbor who lives in Boulder County. I had no issues with this, although I've never gambled in any of the casinos (because math, not morals). Side note: Gilpin is now coming after us homeowners in a big way to make up for lost revenue during the lockdown.

In the general question of "if the money benefits what I like, does the end justify the means?". well, I said above if it personally benefits me I'll at least turn a blind eye.

I don't personally have a problem with anyone who chooses to gamble. I do have a problem with systems that disproportionately prey on uneducated and poor people, whether by design or accident.

And.... I still think it's bad optics for a university.
I'm not super worried about it.

The top NASCAR driver, Kevin Harvick, was principally sponsored by Busch Beer up until this year. Here was his car last year:
4-Clash-1.jpg


I certainly wouldn't say alcohol has better optics than gambling.

Message to CU: Take your gambling sponsorship money and deposit it for good use going forward.
 
Fair enough.

Do you think its bad optics because CU is the first School to do so? Would you have this same take if they were the 20th School to ink a similar deal a few years down the road? I think most people's thoughts around this is because sports gambling in general is still so new (other than NJ and NV).

I don't have any problem with someone thinking this, but that is their personal opinion. However, to think a university inking a deal with a gambling company is the devil but turning a blind eye to a university or even a professional franchise for having sponsorship dollars who do the same with a company in a less discrete way is a little disingenuous to me.
CU will get more attention for being the first, certainly, in that sense it's a higher degree of bad optics.
 
CU will get more attention for being the first, certainly, in that sense it's a higher degree of bad optics.
Yes, and CU can point to the massive benefit a student athlete is receiving because of this partnership. The positive outweighs the negative in this case.
 
I'm not super worried about it.

The top NASCAR driver, Kevin Harvick, was principally sponsored by Busch Beer up until this year. Here was his car last year:
4-Clash-1.jpg


I certainly wouldn't say alcohol has better optics than gambling.

Message to CU: Take your gambling sponsorship money and deposit it for good use going forward.
I was surprised when I learned that Coors was a sponsor of CU sports. I hadn't encountered that before moving here.

I never had a problem with it, but it seemed out of place to me.

I eventually appreciated the ties of that particular sponsor to the area and the historical significance of it.

I have no problems with marijuana, but I don't want a weed sponsor for CU and I dislike the way so many people associate the state with it. Not that I think it's immoral, but just that I don't want someone's first association with my home state to be weed. Accept it, deal with it, but don't shine a light on it. I feel the same way about the VT massacre -- it's part of Tech's history and culture, but I don't want reminders of it all over the VT campus and I don't take part in the annual memorials. I want people to think of outstanding engineering, the military and championship football when they hear "Virginia Tech".
 
Equating the VT massacre with legal weed? Come on, hokie. I’d like to think people think of progressiveness and freedom of choice in many aspects when they think of Colorado.
 
I don't. Just making sure you have the same morally corrupt thought process of just about every large athletic organization in the world.

I don’t think a public institution like CU is just any athletic organisation.
 
Equating the VT massacre with legal weed? Come on, hokie. I’d like to think people think of progressiveness and freedom of choice in many aspects when they think of Colorado.
You completely missed my point and I invite you to read my post again. I was not equating the massacre with weed. I was explicitly equating my feelings when people associate an institution I'm connected to with a less favorable aspect of that institution.
 
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I'm more with Jens on this. Even the most ardent gambler on this site refers to the activity as "degenerate". It's not a good look for the university -- as much as I loath the expression, it's "bad optics".

beyond that, the article at the link in the tweet is a bit confusing. it makes the statement "The deal, which covers sports betting, fantasy sports, casino games and free-to-play contests..." but then only gives details about signs, radio promos and 'career development opportunities for students'. I'm much curious (and concerned, for that matter) about how this deal involves sports betting and casino games than I am about signs at Folsom.
The title of the thread is intentionally provocative. I don’t really think of myself as a degenerate.
 
Only thing surprising to me in the story is that CU was first. Hopefully being the AD that broke the ice netted a deal significantly above CU's basic market value. There had to be a significant value to taking a first mover risk and allowing that huge industry to open a huge market.
 
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I'm not super worried about it.

The top NASCAR driver, Kevin Harvick, was principally sponsored by Busch Beer up until this year. Here was his car last year:
4-Clash-1.jpg


I certainly wouldn't say alcohol has better optics than gambling.

Message to CU: Take your gambling sponsorship money and deposit it for good use going forward.

Busch is still Harvick's primary sponsor
 
Did you comment elsewhere on this idea? I assume you like it? Any idea of financials? Or care to guess?
My guess is that they’re getting about $5-8 million over the course of the deal. It’s a great time to be a cash rich business to get these kinds of arrangements for a good price.
 
"Degenerate gambler" is an historic term coined by mobsters to describe those who cannot cover their losses. It's not the gambling that makes one degenerate, it's failing to pay.
I know the definition and origin of the term. In the poker community, the term has taken on a new meaning. A degen(erate) is a person who’s willing to gamble even when they’re getting the worst end of the odds stick.
 
With CU getting so little of its budget from the state, I’m fine with it getting money almost any way it needs to.
 
I'm not super worried about it.

The top NASCAR driver, Kevin Harvick, was principally sponsored by Busch Beer up until this year. Here was his car last year:
4-Clash-1.jpg


I certainly wouldn't say alcohol has better optics than gambling.

Message to CU: Take your gambling sponsorship money and deposit it for good use going forward.
But, race car driver instead of university.
 
I'm with Jens on the gambling sponsorship...not the best optics for the school even if there are good benefits thrown into the deal.

Now I wonder how long it will be before a MJ company or hemp products company is announced as the next sponsor for CU athletics. Maybe Porn Hub will throw in some money too.
 
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