Aziaha James #10 of the NC State Wolfpack moves her team on the board to the Sweet Sixteen round following their win against the Michigan State Spartans during the Second Round of the 2025 NCAA Women\u2019s Basketball Tournament held at Reynolds Coliseum on March 24, 2025 in Raleigh, North Carolina.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance King | NCAA Photos | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
As March Madness<\/a> nears its peak, sports betting<\/a> is gaining momentum as well \u2014 but new research shows the toll it takes on many households\u2019 financial stability.<\/p>\n Sports fans will bet about $3.3 billion through legal means on this year\u2019s NCAA men\u2019s and women\u2019s basketball tournaments alone, according to an\u00a0<\/a>estimate from the American Gaming Association<\/a> \u2014 a\u00a054%\u00a0jump over the past three years.<\/p>\n However, as more states have legalized mobile sports betting, leading to broader participation, consumer credit health has suffered, a new report by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York<\/a> found.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In its report<\/a>,\u00a0the New York Fed warned of a \u201cnoticeable deterioration in repayment performance\u201d in certain parts of the country with legalized sports betting, as well as \u201cspillover effects\u201d to nearby areas where it\u2019s still not legal.<\/p>\n \u201cFollowing the legalization of sports betting in a state, credit delinquencies increase, driven by those under 40\u00a0years old,\u201d the report said.\u00a0<\/p>\n More than 30 states have legalized mobile sports betting since the Supreme Court struck down the federal ban in 2018, resulting in more than half a trillion dollars in wagers, according to the New York Fed.<\/p>\n Another\u00a02026 paper<\/a>, from researchers at UCLA Anderson School of Management, Harvard University and University of Southern California\u2019s Marshall School of Business, found that the odds of bankruptcy filing in states with legal betting increased by as much as 25% to 30%. <\/p>\n \u201cMost Americans have precious little margin for error when it comes to their finances, and while sports gambling can help in that area when you win, the truth is that it is far more likely to end up hurting more than it helps in the long run,\u201d said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree.\u00a0<\/p>\n The AGA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The NY Fed findings aren\u2019t the only sign of deteriorating consumer credit health. The national average\u00a0credit score<\/a>\u00a0continues to trend lower, according to a separate\u00a0report\u00a0this week from FICO<\/a>, developer of one of the scores most widely used by lenders.<\/p>\n The average score is now 714, down\u00a0two\u00a0points in the last year, driven by the resumption of student loan delinquency reporting and an increase in mortgage delinquencies, according to the report.<\/p>\n FICO scores range between 300 and 850. A good score generally is above 670, a very good score is over 740 and anything above 800 is considered exceptional.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n While the so-called\u00a0K-shaped economy<\/a>\u00a0has caused financial strain for some borrowers, others have strengthened their financial standing, FICO also found. Now, more consumers score in the highest and lowest score ranges.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re simultaneously\u00a0seeing a\u00a0record\u00a0share of consumers demonstrating strong, consistent credit behaviors,\u201d Ethan Dornhelm, head of scores analytics at FICO, said in a statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n A VantageScore report showed a similar dynamic. <\/p>\n The average VantageScore credit score was 701 in February, essentially unchanged from a year earlier. However, some borrowers are gradually moving into lower credit tiers as financial pressures mount, VantageScore research<\/a>\u00a0found, while the most creditworthy borrowers are reducing their credit utilization\u00a0rate, a key component of higher credit scores.<\/p>\n \u201cOverall consumer credit health remains relatively resilient, as improvements in the credit health of top-tier consumers outweigh the deterioration among lower-tier consumers,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThe advice, of course, is to live within your means,\u201d said Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at Bankrate.\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s okay to spend money on the occasional indulgence\u201d \u2014 even sports betting, he said, \u201cyou just need to budget for it.\u201d<\/p>\n Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nRead more CNBC personal finance coverage<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Credit scores show increasing strain<\/h2>\n
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