It’s been a few weeks now since Sports Editor Henry Mode decided to be as unoriginal as possible and debut his rival column to mine, “The Not So Great Debate.” Is it worth your time? Meh, not really.

I did take an unconventional four-week hiatus from this column — something Mode tends to do frequently. But I’m back and better than ever; it’s a different game now, with Mode breathing down my neck in column form.   

His rival column will encourage me to put out better takes, better arguments and better topics that silly, ignorant Mode will have a harder time opposing. A blessing in disguise, if you will, for my ideas and quality of work. 

Daily headlines, sent straight to your inbox.

Subscribe to our newsletter to keep up with the latest at and around USC.

A blessing in disguise is also how some people may characterize the 2018 Supreme Court ruling in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association. This was the case that struck down the federal ban on states being able to authorize sports gambling.

Fast forward to today, and sports gambling has run rampant. Sites like DraftKings and FanDuel are legal in 25 states and in Washington, D.C., but some companies are able to skirt the line. In every state except Washington, you are able to gamble money in sports in some fashion because of apps like PrizePicks or Fliff, which classify themselves as “daily fantasy sports.”

Due to this classification, an app like PrizePicks is available to anyone 18 or older, compared to a site like DraftKings, which is 21+. Some states restrict how much you can win on these apps or what features are available, but you’re still betting on sports. 

Yes, there are illegal ways to participate in sports gambling when you’re under 21, as with every vice. But these companies are not only making it easier to gamble, but allowing those under 21 to participate without breaking the law. The industry is not regulated to any degree, and people — young people especially — are throwing away their money as well as developing lifelong addictions.

A 2023 study by the NCAA found that 58% of those aged 18 to 22 have bet on sports. Combine that with the fact that the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling shows that 1 in 5 college students taps into their financial aid to fund their sports gambling; it’s clear this isn’t something harmless. 

We live in an age of instant gratification — Gen Z is especially vulnerable to this environment, considering we grew up in it — and these sports gambling companies are taking advantage of that. They’re promoting betting on a game as it’s happening, placing as many bets as you can during the actual competition. You can bet on more things than ever, and that’s what they want. 

The house always wins isn’t just a turn of phrase; it’s a fact. The more bets you place, the more likely the “house” is going to take all of your money.

“[The house] will win $5 for every $100 you bet. But nowadays, that’s getting jacked up,” said sports gambling reporter Danny Funt on a recent episode of The Atlantic’s podcast “Good on Paper.” “The parlay hold percentage, which is the house revenue or the house edge, can be as high as 20 percent. So you’re getting beat pretty bad if you bet a lot of parlays.”

And that’s exactly what these sports gambling companies want you to do. In the past week alone, I received 24 emails from PrizePicks and DraftKings encouraging me to place some form of parlay through a promotion. That’s not even counting the countless push notifications I get directly from the apps every single day. The more you bet, the more you want to do it again and that’s what these companies are counting on.

These companies want their “customers” to do that. In addition to the notifications, you can’t escape countless ads urging you to bet every time you watch a sports game. Each commercial is filled with sports media personalities as they urge you to be “just like them” and place a parlay or two.

I would be lying if I said I never gambled on sports. Lots of kids in my high school did it, so naturally, I wanted to as well. I’ve seen firsthand from many of my friends how real and quick this addiction can be. It really doesn’t take long to get addicted and to also be down hundreds if not thousands of dollars quickly.

It’s a problem, and one that isn’t heavily regulated, so these sports gambling companies are able to do seemingly whatever they please. There needs to be more regulation on what these companies are allowed to promote to their consumers and how they advertise.

I worry about what the future holds, especially for younger people. These companies will continue to prey on easy targets, making more and more money at the expense of all of us.

Stefano Fendrich is a senior writing about his opinions on some of sports’ biggest debates in his column, “The Great Debate,” which runs every other Friday. He is also the editor in chief at the Daily Trojan.