NFL Play to Be Basis for Lottery : Oregon Approves Contest Decided by Point Spreads

The Oregon Lottery Commission approved rules Monday for a new game that makes Oregon the only state with a lottery contest based on National Football League point spreads.

The commission, on a 5-0 vote, endorsed the game despite the objections of an NFL attorney, who said the action would harm the integrity of professional football. No further approval is needed for the lottery, and ticket sales are to begin Sept. 6 for the NFL’s first week of games on Sept. 10.

Proceeds from the game, called Sports Action, are to go to Oregon college and university intercollegiate sports programs, which currently do not receive state funding.

The 1989 Oregon Legislature approved a bill calling on the Lottery Commission to create a sports-oriented game to generate money for college sports. Oregon Lottery director Jim Davey and the lottery staff put together the specifics of the NFL contest.

Davey estimates the game will generate between $4 million and $9 million each year for Oregon intercollegiate sports.

Athletic directors at Oregon and Oregon State say state aid is essential if the schools are to remain in the Pacific 10 Conference.

In the football lottery, a $1 investment will allow players to predict the outcome of some or all of the 14 weekly NFL games against the point spreads set by Nevada oddsmakers.

Under rules of the game, players will try to predict the outcome of four to 14 games against the point spreads. The more games they bet, the more money they could win, from about $8 for a perfect four-game card to about $8,000 for a perfect 14-game card.

NFL attorney Jim Noel told the commission the game would create a situation in which fans are more interested in point spreads than how their favorite teams fare.

Noel said the league is concerned that Oregon “is on the brink of triggering a nationwide trend.”

“The entire nation is watching,” he said. “Lottery officials in other states have stated publicly that if Oregon does this successfully, they will try it, too.”

Noel also said the NFL would consider legal action to block the contest.

“We didn’t come out here to threaten anyone,” he said. “There are some very viable legal issues here that we’re going to evaluate.”

The NFL took Delaware to court when that state tried a football betting game, but the lawsuit became moot after Delaware gave up its game after one season in 1974 because it lost money.

In approving the new game, Lottery Commission members noted that betting on professional sports already is widespread in Oregon and around the country.

They said many people take part in office football pools or bet on games through bookmakers, either illegally or through operations in Nevada, the only state that allows gambling on team sports.

“All you have to do in Oregon is pick up a phone and place a bet,” Davey said. “People do it every day.”

Commission member Mike Schwartz of Eugene said he thinks the NFL should embrace the idea as an opportunity to market professional football to new audiences.

“It will make people more excited about NFL football,” Schwartz said.

Noel rejected that argument, and said the NFL does not want to see an expansion of gambling on professional sports.

“The net effect of the Oregon Lottery game will be to increase the overall volume of betting on NFL football,” he said.

Lottery officials have said the game could later be expanded to include National Basketball Assn. games.

In his appearance before the commission, Noel read statements from the NBA and Major League baseball saying they oppose the football lottery on the same grounds as the NFL.