PHOENIX — Jaleni Dudley has been on a losing streak.

It started with a simple bet during March Madness and college basketball season. He placed $60 on the University of Arizona versus Michigan in a Final Four game. For his first bet, Dudley, 22, got an account with  BETMGM sportsbook.

But it didn’t stop there. 

Dudley ended up acquiring more betting apps on his phone.

He’s used these apps to test his odds. He ended up using it more and more during the men’s and women’s NCAA Basketball Tournament. It reached the point where his app store has turned into a digital casino. The different apps offered options from fantasy football, sports betting and event wagering, all at a click of a button.

As a Phoenix resident, Dudley has found himself chasing his losses. Dudley wasn’t the only one gambling during the tournament. Gambling has become a big business in Arizona. In 2021, sports betting and event wagering became legal in the state. 

In December 2025 alone, the Department of Gaming shared that Arizonans gambled roughly $816 million in event wagering through their mobile devices. Even with big wins can come significant losses, as Arizonans lost about $90 million in event wagering. 

Jessica Roza, who works for the Arizona Department of Gaming as the assistant director of government and community affairs, says losing and gambling addiction are a part of the risks.

“Some of the common signs we see are people who become obsessed with betting the odds and become really into the scores, what the players are doing and getting really emotional,” Roza said. 

Dudley wasn’t the only one gambling, big events like the Women’s Final Four in Phoenix attracted crowds to participate in wagering. With high-profile events like the Super Bowl, MLB spring training and collegiate tournaments drawing crowds, more visitors and residents are engaging in legalized wagering.

Event wagering is a form of gambling that includes placing bets via regulated operators from sporting events to horse racing.  In the state, bettors must be at least 21 and use regulated operators,which will help prevent the chances of people chasing their losses.

Problem gambling becomes a part of a larger issue, which is addiction. The Arizona Department of Gaming recognizes problem gambling as a public health issue. Mobile devices have had a role in this with accessibility to event wagering and sports betting which brings another group of people at risk: athletes. 

Just this week, Brendan Sorsby of Texas Tech, one of the top returning college quarterbacks, announced he was entering a residential treatment program for a gambling addiction. The NCAA is investigating Sorsby’s gambling. Last year, the NCAA released that a ban on sports betting for events the NCAA sponsors a championship in would remain in effect.

The NCAA policy prohibits athletes and coaches from participating in sports betting in all three divisions of the NCAA. Outside of the NCAA, sports has seen serious legal issues and crossover where coaches have engaged in gambling. 

In 2025, Portland Trailblazers coach Chauncey Billups and 31 defendants were charged in schemes to rig illegal poker games. The Department of Justice released a press release about the charges. With incidents of coaches gambling on the radar, it poaches their integrity. 

As coaches may be engaged, it’s important for the athletes to stay out the way. Attorney of IBF Law Group, Sheree Wright, has experience working in sports law. As an attorney that helps collegiate athletes with contracts, she said they must avoid sports betting at all times. 

“The most important thing is to maintain distance from anything that involves sports betting because it is so easy to put an athlete in that situations because everyone is sports betting their friends, their family,” Wright said.

If an athlete engages in sports betting, there is a high probability it could ruin their career. 

“You see very few things where an athlete gets in trouble for illegal sports betting,” Wright said.  

To avoid falling into a gambling loophole, the best advice from the Arizona Department of Gaming is to make a plan and stick to it. The department released a platform called “Check Your Bet” where individuals can check their bet with a regulated operator and participate in self-exclusion programs for both in-person and online betting resources.

“Check your bet, make sure you’re betting with a regulated operator but also set a budget, stick to it. Don’t chase your losses,” Roza said. For those facing problem gambling, the state can connect individuals to either out-patient treatment centers or the self-exclusion programs.

This article first appeared on Cronkite News and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.