Vig & Juice is a podcast discussing the history and legality of gambling and sports betting in the US hosted by three attorneys who practice Fantasy Sports & Gaming Law at Vela Wood.

In this episode, we discuss the first sports betting in the U.S. up to the Wire Act of 1961, including horse racing, the spectator sport known as pedestrianism, and using state lotteries to fund the Revolutionary War.

Time Stamps

• 0:45 – Episode Recap


• 1:30 – State Lotteries Funding Universities & Revolutionary War


• 3:05 – Horse Racing


• 5:09 – Pedestrianism


• 7:11 – Games of Skill


• 8:50 – States Outlawing, Early 1900s


• 9:44 – Nevada Legalizing Casinos & Sports Betting


• 10:08 – Federal Revenue Act of 1951 – Taxing Wagers


• 10:37 – Relationship to Economic Climate


• 11:08 – Taxing Vices, Prohibition


• 12:10 – Morality/Immorality of Gambling


• 13:10 – Connections to Organized Crime


• 14:10 – Transition to Wire Act


• 14:47 – Black Sox Scandal


• 15:45 – Baseball Commissioners

Show Notes

• In The 1870s And ’80s, Being A Pedestrian Was Anything But (NPR)


• The Repeal of PASPA


• Why Playing Fantasy Sports Is Legal (For The Most Part)


• Fantasy Sports Contest Legislation Tracker