Foundation awards $2.6 million for studies on online sports betting effects

A foundation has awarded about $2.6 million in research grants to 12 universities and think tanks to study the effects of online sports betting. The projects will examine impacts on financial well-being, household formation, mental health, and consumer behavior.

The studies are housed at institutions including Princeton University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Wisconsin. Researchers will compare states based on when they legalized online sports betting to isolate the effects of those decisions.

Research goals and methods A foundation spokeswoman said the grants aim to give policymakers evidence on the consequences of sports betting and on which regulatory approaches are most effective. The studies will not examine prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket because access to betting data from those platforms is limited.

The spokeswoman added that the foundation is not funding the work to support a predetermined legislative outcome. Most of the studies will rely on state-by-state variation in legalization timing rather than federal prediction-market data.

Broader giving record The foundation has previously focused on criminal justice and education causes. According to a 2025 Institute for Policy Studies report, the couple that runs the foundation is the only Giving Pledge signers who have given away at least half of their net worth.