Former NJ Governor Chris Christie to Keynote Global Gaming Expo

Policy Leader Led Effort to Legalize Sports Betting in America

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a vocal advocate for legal sports betting who led the charge to overturn the federal ban, will deliver a keynote address at Global Gaming Expo (G2E) on Tuesday, Oct. 15. G2E is the premiere gathering of the global gaming industry presented by the American Gaming Association (AGA) and organized by Reed Exhibitions.

New Jersey’s challenge to the constitutionality of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) prompted the Supreme Court’s review and ultimate overturn of the federal ban, paving the way for states and sovereign tribal nations to establish legal, regulated sports betting markets. His keynote comes at a monumental time for sports betting in the United States, with more than a dozen states now offering legal sports betting and additional jurisdictions expected to go live in the coming months.

“Gov. Christie played an essential role in advancing legal sports betting in the United States,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. “Since May 2018, efforts to legalize sports betting, and bring this popular American pastime out of the dangerous illegal market, have taken place in more than 80 percent of the country. More than $10 billion has been wagered in safe, legal, regulated markets in this small amount of time, and none of that would have been possible without Gov. Christie. His insights on how we got here and where we are going will be invaluable to G2E’s attendees.”

“New Jersey was a trailblazer in paving the way for other states to have a say in whether they want to allow sports betting, and I am honored to have had a role in it,” said Gov. Chris Christie. “More than a year after the Supreme Court struck down PASPA, it’s just as important as ever that stakeholders continue to collaborate to make the legal, regulated sports betting marketplace more robust and available to consumers.”

G2E will take place at the Las Vegas Sands Expo & Convention Center (Education: Oct. 14-17 | Expo Hall: Oct. 15-17). Gov. Christie’s keynote, “How New Jersey Fought and Won,” will take place Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 9 a.m. PT on the Special Events Stage.

Scott Stratten’s keynote, “The Age of Disruption: Everything Has Changed and Nothing is Different,” will now be held Wednesday, Oct. 16, at 9 a.m. PT.