State of the Union: FanDuel, DraftKings to impose Illinois surcharge; Quintenz has his day on Capitol Hill, more
NCAA releases 2025 March Madness Signify Data
Days after a federal judge signed a landmark settlement that will pave the way for student athletes to receive direct compensation from their universities, the NCAA released data describing the level of harassment by bettors during its signature event this spring.
Over the course of March Madness, Signify AI analysed threat matrix coverage on more than a million social media posts that mentioned players, coaches and officials participating in the tournament. NCAA President Charlie Baker lauded the project as a resource for athletes in dealing with perilous threats from bettors.
“One of the first things student-athletes told me when I became NCAA president was that they were being harassed online by people who are following or betting on their games,” said Baker in a statement. “From day one, it’s been a priority to study this issue, monitor the public interactions, protect student-athletes and allow them to focus on being students and competing at the highest level on the court with their teammates.”
During March Madness, Signify monitored the accounts of 2,032 players, 346 coaches, 136 teams and 269 game officials and selection committee members.
At the East Regional in Newark, Naismith Player of the Year Cooper Flagg told iGB that a number of his teammates had received angry messages on social media in response to lost wagers.
Decline in player harassment rates
Flagg, the presumptive No 1 pick in the NBA Draft, added that his former Duke teammates mostly just laughed off the threats.
In the 2024 NCAA tournament, former UNC centre Armando Bacot claimed to have received dozens of threatening DMs after missing the “over” on his rebound total, a game in which Bacot led the Tar Heels to an easy win.
While total abuse declined approximately 83% year-over-year, and betting-related abuse declined 66% on the women’s side, the results weren’t as encouraging for the men’s tournament.
On the men’s side, total abuse increased 140%, while abuse related to sports betting decreased 36%. Across all participants, abuse related to sports betting was down 23%.
Sports Betting Alliance adds Bet365
A popular nonprofit trade group has expanded by adding a high-level sportsbook operator.
On 10 June, the Sports Betting Alliance announced that Bet365 will become a member of the coalition, joining other prominent operators FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Fanatics. The SBA formed in 2021, about three years after the historic PASPA decision.
“Bet365 shares the SBA’s commitment to a regulated, transparent and sustainable US online gaming market. Together, we’ll continue fighting for more states to swap their dangerous and unregulated sports betting and iGaming products for regulated, consumer-protected legal platforms,” said Jeremy Kudon, president of the SBA.
Last year, a YouGov survey reported that US bettors aged 21-34 preferred Bet365 as their sportsbook of choice. The UK-headquartered Bet365 is operational in 13 US jurisdictions.
The SBA has garnered headlines recently for its criticism of a number of states for their tax policy on sports wagering. In particular, the SBA excoriated the Illinois Legislature for passing a last-minute tax increase on sportsbook handle that disproportionately penalises the largest operators in the market. FanDuel announced plans this week to impose a $0.50 surcharge on every bet made in the state starting in September, and DraftKings subsequently followed suit.
Last month, The Guardian reported that the Coates family, the owners of Bet365, sought advice from a host of US banks on a potential sale of the company. Such a move could have wide-ranging implications across the US sports betting ecosystem.
Louisiana senate passes bill on sports betting tax hike
A Louisiana bill that aims to raise the tax on sports wagering gross gaming revenues has made it to the desk of Governor Jeff Landry.
The Louisiana senate passed a bill on 8 June to increase the rate from 15.5% to 21.5%, which would bring tens of millions of dollars in additional revenue to state coffers. The bill passed overwhelmingly by a 35-3 vote. As of 1 June, the state generated $22.6 million in taxes from sports betting on revenue of about $180 million. Louisiana is among a bevy of states that have considered tax increases on sports betting this year.
Also this week, Churchill Downs Inc sent a letter to the Louisiana State Racing Commission informing the state that it has initiated plans to relinquish its licence for live racing at the Fair Grounds Race & Slots in New Orleans. Churchill is seeking legislative relief to offset the loss in revenue from legislative changes pertaining to historical horse racing.
“This is not the path CDI wishes to proceed down, but the inaction from elected officials to offer any sort of compromise has made this the only possible outcome…. Closing one of the nation’s oldest racetracks and the most important track in Louisiana, will be a devastating blow to Louisiana’s equine industry and the New Orleans economy,” Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen wrote in the letter.
Stitt: Tribes waiting for his departure to reintroduce sports betting
As expected, the Oklahoma legislative session ended without any resolution to bring sports wagering to the Sooner State.
Negotiations have become so heated between the parties that Governor Kevin Stitt believes the state’s leading tribal groups will now wait until he leaves office before resubmitting a proposal to legalise sports betting. Stitt vowed to veto any tribal-backed sports betting bill that made it to his desk this year. In light of his position, none of the bills passed during the session.
“We analysed the 30 or 40 states that actually have sportsbook and put a great plan together,” Stitt told the Tulsa World. “We set it out to have more of a free-market approach. As I’ve said before, I think the big casinos, the big bosses, are waiting until I’m out of office. So we’ll see what happens, I guess, in 2027.”
The impasse has deprived bettors statewide of wagering on the Oklahoma City Thunder during the NBA Finals.
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