It’s not yet legal in the state of Ohio but sports betting is now being discussed at the statehouse with possible legislation in the near future.
Supporters of sports betting speaking at Lima Mayor David Berger’s weekly press briefing this morning. They say it can be a good thing for the state if controlled by the right entity. They suggest the Ohio Lottery is suited to add sports betting more than a monopoly of a few casinos in the state.
Greg Beswick of the Fair Gaming Coalition of Ohio explains, “I think we need a win-win situation here. We need to have it in the casinos, but we also need to have it at our local restaurants, our local bowling alleys and places throughout the whole state. We have 4 entities in the state that were given the state sponsored monopoly with the casinos and places like Lima were left out and we don’t want to see that happen again.”
Owner of 20th Century Lanes Bowling Alley Jim Riepenhoff has this to add, “You’ve got that customer that’s going to come in and stay longer and that’s what we’re trying to do. Provide that local venue for customers to come in and spend their recreation dollars local in the community. Everybody wins.”
Riepenhoff says he currently doesn’t have any Ohio Lottery games at his bowling alley but is thinking about adding it if sports betting is added to the lottery. They say now is the time to let your state legislator know how you feel about legalized sports betting in Ohio.
