Ex-Nebraska Football Coach Tom Osborne Opposes Online Sports Betting Expansion

Former Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne is among those voicing opposition to the expansion of online sports betting in the Cornhusker State, citing potential dangers and costs.

Tom Osborne voiced disapproval of online sports betting to the Nebraska Legislature’s General Affairs Committee

The Nebraska Legislature’s General Affairs Committee had met on Wednesday to discuss five pieces of fantasy and gaming-related legislation introduced during the recently called special legislative session.

“I see this being very dangerous, particularly for young people,” said Tom Osborne, who publicly opposed two constitutional amendments. These amendments would allow voters to decide on online mobile sports wagering in the upcoming November ballot.

“Having been involved in athletics for most of my life, I can attest to the fact that the most intense criticism and negative circumstances that coaches and athletes have is often not just due to losing on the scoreboard, it often results from not beating the point spread, not meeting such metrics such as number of turnovers, yards lost, yards gained, points scored, etc.,” Osborne added.

Osborne, along with ex-Governor Kay Orr, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts, and State Auditor Mike Foley, signed a joint letter. This letter warns lawmakers that the rewards do not outweigh the risks for gambling.

“I can guarantee you there will be increased addiction and increased costs,” Osborne said. “So, you’re out there, you’ve got 80,000 people watching and a whole bunch more on TV, and you’re 18, 19, 20 years old, and you have a lot on your shoulders. And you don’t need to have gambling problems exacerbate that problem.”

State Senator Eliot Bostar introduced constitutional amendment LR3 for legalized online sports betting

However, State Senator Eliot Bostar, who introduced constitutional amendment LR3, argues that online wagering is inevitable. Bostar also said that Nebraska is missing out on $32 million a year to other states, particularly Iowa.

“Nebraska is giving them a tremendous amount of money. I think we should keep that. I think we should use that money to lower property taxes,” Bostar said.

Danny DiRienzo of GeoComply, a company that provides geolocation security services, provided some data. The software company has blocked more than 2 million attempts to place online sports bets in Nebraska between January and the end of June 2024, a recent study shows.

According to the available data, GeoComply blocked 4.5 million attempts at online bets in Nebraska from July 2023 to June 2024. Online gaming is illegal and controlled by geofence technology in the Cornhusker State.

In the past year, GeoComply has tracked half a million bets placed just across the border in Iowa.

“That is very likely related to Nebraskans crossing the border to place a legal wager,” DiRienzo explained.

A recent poll conducted by the gaming industry indicates a public sentiment. It shows that 65% of respondents favored online sports wagering if it went towards property tax relief.

“This is new tax revenue. It’s not a shift. Although we’re shifting from Iowa which is going to lose $100 million,” said Lance Morgan of Ho-Chunk.

Gov. Jim Pillen has indicated his stance. He favors allowing voters to decide on the issue. However, his former coach, Osborne, believes it shouldn’t be in the playbook.

“Promoting online sports betting will not result in a net benefit in Nebraska taxpayers,” Osborne concluded.