I have Thursday, September 6, circled on my calendar, and you should, too.

First, my hometown Philadelphia Eagles kick off (see what I did there?) the new NFL season as the defending Super Bowl champions against the Atlanta Falcons. I would be there if I could, but I’ll be traveling and watching in the middle of the night from Italy.

The other bigger reason I have that date circled is because it begins the first NFL season in the era of legalized sports betting. Four states have led the way – Nevada, the only state in which it was legal before, and now Delaware, New Jersey and Mississippi have all jumped on board quickly after the Supreme Court opened the door in May.

This is just the beginning. Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and West Virginia are not far behind having already passed legislation to legalize sports betting but not yet accepting bets. More bills are making their way through state legislatures in over half the U.S states, according to Forbes. And in nearly a dozen of those states, the bills have been “fast-tracked.” In West Virginia for example, the state initiated “emergency regulations” to legalize sports gambling by fall.

Why the rush? The NFL.

Quite simply, the majority of sports bets are placed on NFL games. Try this number on for size: The amount of money bet on last year’s Super Bowl over $4.5 billion! On just one game.

And here’s the big opportunity – more than 95% of those bets were illegal.

With legalization spreading, you can see why companies, states, bettors and investors are eager to get things in place as soon as they can with the NFL season about to get under way.

Looking in the Wrong Places

History shows that some of the greatest investment opportunities – where individual investors like us can make life-altering returns – are almost always made possible with “front running” landmark government actions. Lifting the ban on gold ownership in 1971 resulted in a surge of buying interest that sent gold prices and related stocks through the roof.

We’re living through two similar situations with the legalization of sports betting as well as marijuana. Both are absolutely monster trends in their very early stages, giving us truly unique opportunities to make a lot of money.

The legal sports betting industry is estimated to be worth up to $400 billion a year as more people bet and more betting possibilities emerge. You can see what I’m talking about with recent projections from Nielsen Sports.

There’s a ton of interest in making money on this theme, but so far nine out of every 10 articles and reports I’ve read fail to connect the dots properly. And a lot of money managers, and even some billionaire investors, seem to be buying the wrong stocks.

The problem is they are looking in the rearview mirror. They’re basing their assumptions on what happened in the illegal sports betting industry, but that’s only part of the story.

In the former era that is just now ending, there were a few bets you could make – which team will win, the over/under on points scored, etc. Those will certainly make their way into legalized sports betting.

However, the number of available bets will explode thanks to in-game bets. That means hundreds of possible bets before and during the game. In other words, no break in the wagering. For example, I could bet that Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz will complete his next pass attempt to wide receiver Alshon Jeffery. (That actually wouldn’t be a bad bet!)

It’s not some imaginary scenario either. Sports betting is already done this way in the U.K. If you walk into a pub during a soccer match or the British Open, you’ll see people placing bets on their smartphones and adjusting accordingly to a changing set of odds.

No local bookie in America has ever been able to do this, and the so-called experts are not adequately factoring in the impact of this second game changer after legalization itself.

Now Is the Time to Buy for Big Gains

Hockey great Wayne Gretzky famously said you want to skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been. That’s exactly the way investors need to look at this big mega-trend. There are multiple ways to profit, and now is the time to get in.

I’ve already recommended a few stocks to my Investment Opportunities readers, and I am targeting big returns as these companies ride what I anticipate will not only be an economic tidal wave but a full-blown cultural phenomenon. We started with stocks in different areas, from casinos to betting technology to sportsbooks themselves. Each company is a standout in its field and has huge potential.

For example, one company has an infrastructure already built and proven for mobile wagering. These guys have the tech to make app-based sports gambling a near-term reality. The company’s sportsbook app was launched six years ago and has since been downloaded more than 2.5 million times from the Apple App Store.

Just imagine what’s to come. The majority of bets will ultimately be through mobile devices, and this firm has a big advantage with its well-established app, name recognition and existing loyalty among gamblers.

By now I’m sure you heard about the Supreme Court’s decision in May that cleared the way to legal sports betting. You may not have realized just how big of an opportunity this is, but I hope you do now. Things are happening fast, so don’t wait to get yourself in position to make money from it.

Matt has prepared an exclusive presentation with all of the details on this opportunity, including how he zeroed in on the 3 best stocks to own inside the emerging new trend of legal sports gambling. Click here to view it now and learn how to get started right away before another state legalizes sports betting.