Listen On:

  • Apple Podcasts
  • Spotify
  • Amazon Music
  • Apple
  • Spotify
  • Amazon

Join Pushkin+

Gain access to ad-free versions of 20+ podcasts from the Pushkin library along with exclusive bonus episodes and other member benefits.

Journalist and bestselling author Michael Lewis explores the figures in American life who rely on the public’s trust, whether in sports, in business, in the courtroom, or on TV. What happens when that trust erodes and we can no longer agree on what’s fair and what’s not?

In the latest season of his podcast, Michael takes on America’s newest form of legalized gambling, sports betting, and how it’s changing what it means to be a player…a teenager…and most of all, a fan.

Do you have a question for Michael Lewis? Submit it HERE and tune in for new episodes of Against the Rules where he’ll be answering your submissions.

Most Recent Episode

Episode 7: Little Big Short

As a resident of California, Michael Lewis cannot place bets on any of the online sports books at the center of this season. They’re not allowed to operate in the…

Episode 5: The Mule

The role has many names: “Runner,” “mover,” “betting partner,” and “mule.” As skilled sports gamblers find themselves limited on apps, they turn to these affiliates to place their bets in…

An Interview with Ted Olson

Constitutional lawyer and former US Solicitor Ted Olson recently died at the age of 84. Olson represented the state of New Jersey in its efforts to overturn a federal ban…

Episode 4: A Hard Way to Make an Easy Living

Michael Lewis heads to Las Vegas to explore the way sports betting used to work, up until the day it was rapidly legalized by states around the country. We meet…

Marci Cottingham on the Religious Passion of Steeler Nation

Is there a difference between fandom and religion? In Pittsburgh, it can be hard to tell. Fans of the city’s football team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, seem to have a cradle-to-grave…

Alison LaCroix on How History Rhymes at the Supreme Court

It may seem like sports gambling got legalized overnight in the US. But it was in fact a winding road to get there. Michael Lewis speaks with legal historian and…

Episode 3: Welcome to the Garden State

How did we get from fantasy sports to legalized sports betting? The path is convoluted, but most of it winds through New Jersey. Michael Lewis speaks with former governor Chris…

Episode 2: Values of the Game

Bill Bradley was already famous in college as the epitome of certain American virtues: integrity, honesty, and athleticism. As an NBA star, he took those virtues to the big leagues.…

Episode 1: What’s Wrong with Eric?

Sports fans experience incredible highs and lows, and spend loads of money on a product over which they have no control. But for a long time, no one bothered to…

Against the Rules: Fans

Against the Rules is going to Vegas (by way of New Jersey!). Host Michael Lewis bets high and low to find out how Americans, and their state governments, got addicted…

The Host