State of Friday: THE END OF SPORTS
We’re going to take a break from politics today. Every now and then it just gets a bit too stupid for me to handle, and I divert my attention elsewhere a bit.
Greetings, Dear Reader,
We’re going to take a break from politics today. Every now and then it just gets a bit too stupid for me to handle, and I divert my attention elsewhere a bit.
Democrats thinking they have the high ground because they won a bunch of highly expected races isn’t what’s getting me. It’s Republicans agreeing.
Good lord, guys, so what? Did we really expect a win in New Jersey? Was Cuomo really the conservative in NYC?
In any case, here’s my brief respite: Sports are finished.
But first, a quick word from our sponsor.
NICKEL-AND-DIMED
ALP spots a ZYN beggar: “Got 34 cents for one pouch?” That’s not a request—that’s a ransom note from a guy whose flavor fled the scene. Roast Week is turning ZYN’s weak, dry, pocket-change crumbs into ash with bold, juicy blasts that don’t beg for quarters.
End the cup-rattling and load up at ALPPouch.com where you get 20 pouches per tin, compared to the usual stingy 15.
Get a 10% discount code instantly just for submitting a roast at http://alppouch.com/roast.
Sponsored by ALP. The new standard of nicotine pouches. Created by real users, not suits in a boardroom.
THE END OF SPORTS
Graham Gano wants out. He used to be one of the best kickers in the NFL. An absolute sniper. But hearing him talk, it’s clear he’s finished.
The beleaguered New York Giant has been on and off the injured reserve list. His most recent injury is supposedly a herniated disc in his neck. I say supposedly because in my experience with challenging physical endeavors, people who suddenly lack the will to perform will invent all sorts of excuses.
They’ll also get legitimately injured more than folks with iron, unperturbable wills. It’s one of those things you can’t really measure scientifically, yet know to be true. If your unit’s morale is terrible, they’ll be sick and broken way more often.
What’s getting to Gano’s morale is more than just battlefield weariness, however.
“Ever since sports betting started, I get people telling me to kill myself every week,” he told reporters in the locker room. “Because I’ll hit a kick that loses them money, or I’ll miss a kick and it loses them money. The other day, somebody told me to get cancer and die.”
There’s a long history of fan vitriol for kickers. God bless Scott Norwood, who missed a chip shot to lose a Super Bowl for the Buffalo Bills 30-some-odd years ago.
This vitriol is different. It’s not the desperation that springs from a deep love for the home team. It’s a chorus of degenerate voices who are betting their kids’ college funds from the very couches in their homes, via mobile apps that have sprung up in the last ten years and taken over all of gaming.
You see them everywhere. They sponsor everything. They sponsor ESPN and CBS Sports broadcasts. They sponsor podcasts. They even sponsor barely relevant podcasts. Theo Von is doing sports betting ads.
It’s hard to describe how quickly and completely the vice took over average living rooms that would usually have never made a wager beyond one among friends. Monthly online sports gambling in New Jersey alone has surpassed $1 billion.
These are dads, store managers, teachers, all-around normal people.
It was only so long before the vice begot even more vice.
The NBA, MLB and UFC have all been hit with allegations regarding athletes who may or may not have been influenced by online gambling or criminal gambling organizations seeking an edge in betting markets. The investigations prompted the NFL to send out a warning to all its players to reacquaint themselves with the league’s gambling policies.
But it’s only a matter of time.
Online gambling revenue dwarfs that of leagues like the NFL. The league expects to drive about $24 billion in revenue this year. Online gambling will do $150 billion.
It’s become the biggest monster on the block, and it’ll eat everything before it’s through.
The ease of online gambling is driving the financial misery of average Americans ever skyward — Rutgers recently did a study linking online gambling to increased suicidality, particularly among young men — and now it’s also threatening to bring down the sanctity of American sports.
Did they get to the refs? Did he fumble on purpose?
When billions are at stake at the press of a button, the temptation is too high; the gravity is too strong.
Sports will inevitably fall if we don’t do something about it soon.
I’m glad the FBI has taken notice, particularly in the NBA, but that won’t be enough. Keeping sports honest isn’t enough; that does nothing but reassure the common man as he bets the farm on the under.
I’ll admit, I’ve even made a few wagers myself, and I hate losing money. I almost never gamble except on small cash games of poker among friends.
What does extracting one billion dollars a month from the people of New Jersey look like after ten years? How much misery will we begin to see?
The bottom line: The clock is ticking on these apps. They’re no good for America.
It’s a zero-sum game. Either they win, or we do.
I choose us.
WHAT I’M READING
*Grabs popcorn* welp, this will at the very least be interesting, eh?
Elise Stefanik Launches Campaign To Unseat ‘Worst Governor’ Kathy Hochul In 2026
—
Of course they don’t. Vibes, y’all!
Tons Of Mamdani Supporters Don’t Actually Know Why They Voted For Him
—
Who’d’ve thought doing porn would put miles on the ol’ odometer?
Porn Star Stormy Daniels Appears Unrecognizable In Latest Interview
WHAT I’M WATCHING
Here Are The People Who Voted For Mamdani Because of TikTok
Like what you’re reading? If so, please consider subscribing to State of the Day or sharing this with a friend. You’d be supporting this newsletter and helping keep independent journalism alive.