The legalization of casinos and gambling licensing has always been a highly controversial issue.In some countries gambling is completely legal, and the activities of casino operators are regulated by the state. In others, gaming is in the “gray zone”, which means that offshore platforms can enter the market of a jurisdiction, and players will not be punished for visiting such websites. However, there are many places in the world where gambling is strictly prohibited and players can be punished with gigantic fines or even imprisoned.
Surprisingly, there are many people eager to gamble even in the countries belonging to the last category, even at the risk of their own safety. The thing is that gambling has existed for almost as long as humanity itself, and therefore the desire to play is only natural. Wouldn’t it be better in this case to legalize the industry and control it, preventing fraud, money laundering and other crimes?
Let’s take a look at the most compelling benefits of legalizing casino games.
Legalization is the best protection for players
Even ardent opponents of gambling will not argue that imposition of a total ban invariably leads to an increase in the number of illegal, underground, “black” casinos and virtual gaming platforms. This, in turn, is fraught with many negative consequences, including:
- Theft and distribution of personal data of players, with no guarantee that this information will not fall into the hands of fraudsters and will not be used for illegal purposes. At the same time, gambling platforms strictly governed by law provide a high level of protection and do not allow leakage of personal data.
- Loss of the players’ funds. Illegal casinos also do not ensure sufficient protection of its customers’ money. If you play on illegal casino websites, you can lose your winnings in the blink of an eye and not get your deposits back.
- Committing crime. Unfortunately, illegal casinos often become the scene of various illegal activities such as money laundering or even human trafficking.
All these problems are solved by subjecting the gambling industry to legal regulation and introducing licensing for casinos. Even though operators will need to fulfill a number of strict requirements to obtain a permit, their customers will be protected by law. Playing on a licensed iGaming platform will keep your money and personal data safe.
Legal casinos can enrich the country’s budget
Gambling is a fast-growing and blooming industry that can bring a lot of money to the country. There are two common ways in which government revenues can be generated from gaming and betting entities.
- Taxation of gambling venues
The taxes that licensed casinos pay to the government generate a huge contribution to the state treasury. To make things clear, the US tax revenue from the gambling industry in 2021 amounted to $53 billion. It should also be taken into account that the number of visitors of online casinos and virtual betting websites had increased during the pandemic. The more players, the greater the income of the platform and the tax paid to the state.
- Tourist areas with land-based casinos
World-famous gambling centers like Las Vegas, Monte Carlo or Macau attract many tourists who are ready to spend large amounts of money in casinos. Fascinated by local attractions, wealthy vacationers spend millions in gambling facilities. Moreover, casino areas usually harbor expensive shopping centers, prestigious restaurants and hotels where tourists also have to fork out some money. This way, legal casinos can turn any trivial location into a popular tourist destination that will help local businesses and the government make more and more money.
Casino legalization can create more jobs
The legalization of gambling is also an important step towards lowering the unemployment rate because both offline and virtual casinos create a lot of job positions. And it’s not just about the direct employees of gambling establishments, but also about people of various professions that are necessary for the functioning of each enterprise in this industry — game and software developers, UX/UI and graphic designers, animators, marketing, sales and customer support managers, etc.
Legalization of casinos as a way to combat criminal gangs
For many years, criminal groups and mafia clans have used casinos to launder their dirty money. One of the effective measures to counteract such criminal activity is the legalization of gambling. When gaming establishments operate transparently and under the scope of the law, it becomes almost impossible to withdraw illegal money through them.
Gambling addiction as a major argument against legalization?
The main argument of opponents of casino legalization is that gambling leads to addiction among players. Unfortunately, this is indeed a huge problem in the industry, but suppose that gambling is banned, does this mean that this problem will disappear? Definitely not. In fact, it is the unlicensed platforms where playing is completely uncontrolled and therefore can easily lead to addiction, because illegal operators do not care about the mental health of their customers.
On the other hand, licensing requirements in jurisdictions where gambling is regulated include measures against gambling addiction. These include, for instance, posting information about addiction on the casino’s website, sharing contacts of support services that help game addicts, and even setting some daily or monthly deposit limits for potentially vulnerable customers.
Many experts believe that the legalization of casinos and bookmakers will lead to the formation of a conscious attitude towards gambling that will help fight addiction. In addition, part of the tax contributions from the operation of gaming companies can be directed to research on possible ways to combat gambling addiction.
Conclusion
Pros of operating casinos legally definitely outweigh its cons. Gambling legalization not only enriches jurisdictions, but also protects players and creates a lot of new jobs. Moreover, a well-designed and functional gambling legislative framework helps fight crime, money laundering and even gambling addiction.
There are many successful examples of countries that not only legalized casinos, but also started issuing licenses to foreign operators. Malta, Gibraltar, Curacao, Costa Rica, Isle of Man, Kahnawake and other jurisdictions annually boost their budgets thanks to licensing fees and taxes from the gambling business.
