Adam Silver is clearly one of those upstart commissioners that set out to make a statement as commish. Rob Manfred is attempting to do that in the MLB. And Silver is already making moves. He hasn’t even been in the position for two years yet.
In this day and age, legalized betting is all the rage. Come here to England, we advertise gambling like you Americans advertise confectionery and cars. Oh yes I have seen the ads. So it is a matter of time before Adam Silver gets what he is preaching for.
“It’s good for business, I don’t want to hide from that,” he continued. “Putting aside whether or not we’re actually actively involved in any of the betting, it creates more engagement. We all know as fans if you have, even like a gentleman’s bet or a $5 bet with your friend on a game, all of a sudden you’re a lot more interested.”
“I did speak to all the other commissioners,” Silver said. “There was a range of reactions. Some were, ‘What are you doing?’ Others were, ‘Let’s study it, seems like an interesting idea.’ And that is not that we’re necessarily out there promoting sports betting, but the latest estimate is there’s somewhere between $300 and $400 billion a year being bet on sports in this country.“
Take it from me. It. Is. Only. A. Matter. Of. Time.
This will happen. I guarantee you that the other commissioners will at least research into it. They can’t bat this away any longer.
