Official betting is a new frontier in sports gambling that’s taking place as more states and sports leagues legalize the practice. The concept is simple: teams and sportsbooks partner with one another to accept wagers on games. This gives the leagues visibility on where and who is making bets, and allows them to catch any improper betting patterns or alleged rigged games.
The NFL beefed up its in-house technology and dedicated security personnel, and partnered with sportsbooks and integrity firms to monitor betting markets and identify potential violations. This allows the league to see bets that might be a violation of its rules, like a bettor putting money on an individual player or game, and also lets it know when a bettor is using an app to place bets at a stadium during an actual game.
In addition to the obvious benefits, a team-sportsbook partnership can help the league protect its brand. The NBA, for example, requires sportsbooks to sign an agreement with the league before it will allow them to advertise during a game. This helps the NBA monitor where and how bets are being placed, and it prevents a single bookmaker from dominating the market.
When legalized, the partnership will be displayed on a sportsbook’s website, and the league will share the revenue with the team. This will help teams compete for the most bets, and it will also help ensure that the betting market is fair for all bettors. The NBA has also teamed up with the Atlantic Coast Conference to create a sports betting consortium, and it has signed deals with multiple North Carolina sportsbooks to offer its own betting platform.
The major sports leagues have fought hard to block legalization of sports betting in New Jersey, and they won the case at both the lower and Third Circuit courts. New Jersey wanted to delegate authority for sports betting to its casinos and racetracks, but the leagues argued that they were protected by the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PAPSA), which states and other governmental entities are not allowed to pass laws to sponsor, operate, advertise or promote sports betting without the consent of the sports leagues.
In 2022, the NBA and MLB jointly launched an initiative to combat sports-betting skepticism by creating a database of credible research. The database includes a number of studies that are vetted by experts, and it also provides a range of facts about sports-betting controversies.
Currently, there are 30 states plus Washington, DC, that offer legal sports betting, and Colorado is the most recent state to launch legal online betting. However, many sportsbooks still do not accept bets on in-state college games.
NCAA athletes can only bet on a sport that is part of an NCAA championship tournament. This means that an athlete involved with a national baseball team cannot bet on a national football game, but they can bet on an NCAA basketball game. Athletes are also required to be educated on the topic and sign a document that confirms they understand sports betting rules.