Sports betting went from illegal in most of the country to legal in 38 states and the District of Columbia in roughly six years, with online betting available in 30 of them. That is one of the fastest expansions of any regulated industry in modern American history, and the population absorbing most of the risk from it is young men.
The national picture is more nuanced than the headlines suggest, and it’s worth getting right. Problem gambling rates across the whole adult population have not continued climbing; they’ve settled back to where they were before the pandemic. What has not settled is the concentration of risk. Being male and under 35 remains one of the strongest predictors of problematic gambling, and the forms of betting growing fastest are the ones most associated with harm.
Key Takeaways
- Problematic gambling behavior rose from 7% of adults in 2018 to 11% in 2021, then fell back to 8% in 2024.
- Researchers attribute the 2021 spike more to the pandemic than to the expansion of sports betting.
- Risk is heavily concentrated: 10% of men report indicators of problematic play, nearly double the rate among women.
- 15% of adults aged 18 to 34 meet at least one criterion for problematic play, compared with 2% of those 55 and older.
- Online betting and parlay wagering, both associated with higher risk, have grown substantially since 2018.
What the National Data Actually Shows
The most comprehensive tracking comes from the National Council on Problem Gambling, which has run its National Survey on Gambling Attitudes and Gambling Experiences three times: in 2018, before widespread legalization; in 2021, during the pandemic; and again in April 2024.
The headline finding from the third survey is that levels of problematic play returned to 2018 levels. The share of adults reporting at least one of four potentially problematic gambling behaviors “many times” went from 7% in 2018 to 11% in 2021, and back down to 8% in 2024. The report’s own conclusion is that the 2021 increase may have been driven more by the COVID-19 pandemic than by the expansion of sports betting.
That deserves to be stated plainly because it cuts against a common narrative. Legal sports betting expanding to 38 states did not produce a continued national surge in problem gambling. What it did was change who is exposed and how.
The 8% figure is still substantial. It represents almost 20 million American adults reporting at least one indicator of problematic gambling behavior many times in the past year.
Where the Risk Is Concentrated
The aggregate number hides an enormous spread. The survey found that among people meeting at least one criterion for problematic play:
- 10% of males met a criterion, almost twice the rate of females
- 15% of 18- to 34-year-olds met a criterion, compared with just 2% of those 55 or older
- 24% of fantasy sports bettors and 17% of traditional sports bettors met a criterion
- 19% of those making at least some bets online met a criterion
- 28% of those betting on 10 or more different gambling activities met a criterion
- 35% of those gambling on three or more activities weekly or more often met a criterion
The survey identified the greatest predictors of risk as participating in many different gambling activities, gambling weekly or more often, believing gambling is a good way to make money, participating in sports or fantasy betting, gambling online, and being male and/or under the age of 35.
A young man who bets on sports online, weekly, across several platforms sits at the intersection of nearly every risk factor the survey identified. That profile isn’t unusual. It’s close to the target demographic the industry markets to.
What Changed in How People Bet
The structural shifts matter more than the headline prevalence number. Two stand out.
Betting moved onto phones. Online gambling participation rose from 15% in 2018 to 22% in 2024. That removes nearly every friction that used to limit gambling: travel, business hours, carrying cash, and being seen. A phone allows betting during a workday, in bed at 2 a.m., or in the middle of the game being wagered on.
Parlays took over. The share of sports bettors making parlay wagers nearly doubled, from 17% in 2018 to 30% in 2024. Parlays combine multiple bets into one wager requiring every leg to hit. They offer large advertised payouts and carry a much larger house edge than straight bets. They’re also structurally suited to loss-chasing, since a near miss on a five-leg parlay feels like almost winning rather than losing.
Research on sports gambling in the Americas and the rise of invisible risks describes this shift toward continuous, app-based, high-frequency wagering as a meaningful change, like the exposure rather than simply more of the same activity.
Why Young Men Specifically
Several factors compound in this group.
- Direct marketing. Sports betting advertising is built around young male sports fandom, with promotions, free bet offers, and integration into broadcasts and highlight content.
- Skill illusion. Sports betting feels like an application of knowledge rather than chance. Someone who follows a sport closely believes their expertise gives them an edge, which sustains betting through losses in a way slot machines do not.
- Social normalization. Betting is now embedded in how many young men watch and discuss sports, so it looks like participation rather than gambling.
- Developmental timing. The brain systems governing impulse control and long-term risk assessment continue maturing into the mid-twenties.
- Financial exposure. Younger adults typically have less financial cushion, so losses translate to real consequences faster.
- Reluctance to disclose. Gambling losses carry a particular shame, and there’s no physical sign a friend or family member would notice.
That last point separates gambling from substance use disorders in an important way. Nobody smells it on your breath. There’s no slurred speech, no track marks, no hangover. Someone can lose an enormous amount of money over months while appearing entirely fine, and frequently the first anyone learns of it is when the financial damage becomes impossible to hide.
Research on risk factors for gambling problems among sports bettors found the vulnerable profile to be young, male, single, educated, and employed full-time or studying full-time, a description that maps closely onto the audience sports betting markets to most aggressively. That study also identified normative beliefs as a factor, meaning that how much a person thinks their peers bet shapes how much they bet themselves. In a social circle where wagering is standard, the internal reference point for normal moves accordingly.
Work specifically examining online sports betting as an emerging addiction in youth adds a further concern: among young adults aged 16 to 24, increasing gambling severity over time has been associated with higher risk of suicide attempts. The financial consequences are the visible part of the harm, and they are not the most serious part.
The Overlap With Substance Use
Gambling disorder is classified alongside substance use disorders in the DSM-5 because it engages the same reward circuitry and produces recognizably similar features: tolerance, in the form of needing larger bets for the same excitement; withdrawal-like irritability and restlessness when trying to stop; loss of control; and continued use despite consequences.
The two also co-occur frequently. Alcohol is served freely in casinos and consumed heavily during sports viewing, and both lower inhibition around the other. Stimulants extend sessions. People who develop one disorder are at elevated risk of the other, and treating only one leaves the other driving relapse.
The practical overlap shows up in how the two escalate together. A night of betting that goes badly is frequently a night of heavier drinking, and heavier drinking makes the next wager larger. That loop tightens quickly, and it’s a familiar pattern to anyone who has watched alcohol dependence progress in someone they care about. Programs that assess for behavioral addictions at intake catch this; programs that only ask about substances frequently miss it entirely and discharge someone into the exact trigger that will restart their drinking.
This is relevant to families already dealing with a substance use problem. If a person in early recovery suddenly develops an intense sports betting habit, that’s worth taking seriously rather than treating as a harmless substitute. The reward pathway involved is the same one, and family support during recovery works better when it accounts for behavioral addictions rather than only chemical ones.
Warning Signs Worth Knowing
Because there’s no physical presentation, the signs are behavioral and financial:
- Betting amounts increasing over time to produce the same excitement
- Chasing losses with larger wagers to get even
- Borrowing money, selling belongings, or unexplained financial trouble
- Secrecy about phone use, or defensiveness when asked about betting
- Irritability or restlessness when unable to bet
- Betting interfering with work, sleep, or relationships
- Multiple betting apps or accounts, particularly after self-excluding from one
- Mood tracking closely with wins and losses
The survey also found something that shapes how families respond. A majority of the adult population attributes gambling problems to moral weakness or lack of willpower, and a belief that gambling problems are not serious remains a common misconception. That framing keeps people from disclosing and keeps families from treating it as a health issue with available treatment.
Treatment does exist and works. Cognitive behavioral therapy has the strongest evidence base for gambling disorder. For someone whose gambling sits alongside alcohol or drug use, treating both together produces better results than addressing either alone.
References
- National Survey on Gambling Attitudes and Gambling Experiences 3.0: Key Findings – National Council on Problem Gambling
- Sports gambling in the Americas: the rise of invisible risks – National Library of Medicine
- Demographic, Behavioural and Normative Risk Factors for Gambling Problems Amongst Sports Bettors – National Library of Medicine
- Current Addiction in Youth: Online Sports Betting – National Library of Medicine
FAQs
Why Are Parlay Bets Considered Riskier?
Parlays require every leg to hit, which makes them far less likely to win while advertising large payouts. They carry a substantially larger house edge than straight bets, and a near miss feels like almost winning, which encourages chasing. Their share of sports betting nearly doubled between 2018 and 2024.
Can Gambling Addiction Cause Physical Withdrawal?
Not in the way alcohol or opioids do, but people trying to stop commonly report irritability, restlessness, insomnia, anxiety, and difficulty concentrating. Gambling disorder is classified with substance use disorders because it engages the same reward circuitry and produces similar patterns of tolerance and loss of control.
How Do You Bring It Up With Someone?
Lead with specific observations rather than accusations, and focus on behavior and consequences rather than character. Because a majority of people still see gambling problems as a failure of willpower, framing it as a treatable health condition makes disclosure far more likely. Have the helpline number and a treatment option ready before the conversation.
