Fahrenkopf: NCAA move is self-serving

David Strow

Thursday, Nov. 11, 1999 | 10:57 a.m.

Top gambling industry lobbyist Frank Fahrenkopf fired a verbal broadside at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Wednesday, accusing the powerful organization of trying to "cover their rear end" by pushing a federal bill that would ban wagering on collegiate sporting events.

"Every single major college campus in this country has an illegal student bookie. It's all illegal," the president of the American Gaming Association said. "There is no connection between the sports books in Nevada, where you've got to be 21 to place a bet ... and the illegal activity activity that's going on on campus. So I really think they're covering their own tail.

"They're looking for a symbolic scalp they can keep on their belt to cover their own inefficiencies in dealing with the issue."

Fahrenkopf was in Las Vegas Wednesday to meet with industry officials to discuss strategy in fighting a proposed ban. Industry officials believe the bill will be introduced by Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., regarded as a critic of the gaming industry.

While in Las Vegas, Fahrenkopf took time out to speak on POV Vegas, a Las Vegas Sun television news discussion program on the cable channel Las Vegas One.

Fahrenkopf said there was little hope of compromising with the NCAA on the proposed ban, recalling his experience as a lawyer in Reno pursuing litigation against the organization.

"It was like dealing with the Gestapo," Fahrenkopf said. "They're very tough. The NCAA is not used to compromising.

"Somewhere between $100 billion and $300 billion is bet on sports each year. Of that, $2.3 billion is bet legally in Nevada. One third of that is college athletics. So it's a very small, infinitesmal piece of the problem. We're not part of the problem ... we're part of the solution to the problem."

Fahrenkopf pointed out that it was the Nevada Gaming Control Board, acting on tips from state sports books, that alerted the FBI and the NCAA to unusual betting activity on Arizona State University basketball games several years ago -- a tip that broke open a point-shaving scandal involving several team members and a student bookie.

Meanwhile, Fahrenkopf accused the NCAA of doing little to crack down on the problem on its member campuses.

"We intend to point out to members of Congress that it is the NCAA who can do more than any other organization in the country about illegal sports betting on campus," Fahrenkopf said. "They have power over their member campuses.

"They have hundreds of millions of dollars they're paid by the networks to televise sporting events ... they ought to be using some of those funds for the purpose of educating students, putting programs in place."

Still, Fahrenkopf acknowledged that the NCAA holds a powerful political hand.

"They'll say, 'You can either support the NCAA and our efforts to protect teenage athletes, or you can support Nevada gamblers. Who are you going to choose?"' Fahrenkopf said. "That's a powerful argument. We've got our work cut out for us."

Despite the looming battle in Congress, Fahrenkopf said he expects gambling to remain a local issue, not a national issue in the 2000 elections. That could change if Atlantic City casino mogul Donald Trump proceeds with his campaign for the Reform Party presidential nomination.

If that happens, Fahrenkopf predicted the spotlight will begin to shine on Trump's casino connections and the rest of the industry as a whole.

"(The national media) will move to other issues out there, and that complicates things," Fahrenkopf said.

Still, Fahrenkopf expressed confidence that the vast majority of American people are on the industry's side. A recent poll commissioned by the AGA, he said, showed that 80 percent those surveyed approved of gambling as a legitimate recreational activity.

"The American people overwhelmingly support the right of any individual to gamble if they want to," Fahrenkopf said. "They view gambling as a fun night out. About 80 percent of the people in this country don't see it as a threat, don't see it as a moral issue."