During his time as State Governor for New Jersey, Chris Christie played an integral role in spearheading the challenge against the federal ban on sports betting via PASPA, which eventually was ruled as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in May last year.
In April at the Betting on Sports America conference, which was held at the Meadowlands Exposition Center in New Jersey, Christie was inducted into SBC’s Hall of Fame for the pioneering role that he played in widening the scope for sports betting in the US.
At the ceremony, Christie explained: “The most memorable moment in repealing PASPA was sitting in the front row of the US Supreme Court when they announced the case of the NCAA versus Christie. Seeing the Supreme Court, their argument and seeing that it was going well was the most memorable moment of the entire thing.
“I felt strongly about the issue and I never thought that anything like this would happen but I’m thrilled to have it happen and I’m honored to be here tonight.”
Christie offered advice to the states that are edging towards sports betting legalization at the minute, stating that the key thing is to be “honest, open and transparent”.
He said: “Set up a regulatory scheme that invites people of all different types to come in and participate in the process. And let people have fun because this is what it’s really all about. I think that the states that are considering it, your citizens are going to enjoy it a great deal.
“I think New Jersey will be the center of sports gaming and of regular gaming as well, because we were the first ones on the block here outside of Nevada to do it and there’s great momentum here – a huge population center here in New York, New Jersey, the Philadelphia area and that New Jersey has dominated that market and we intend on continuing.”
