College Athletes, Coaches Detail Sports Betting Effects In Tonko Sitdown


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LOUDONVILLE, NY – College sports betting took center stage at Siena College in upstate New York on Thursday as student-athletes and coaches detailed social media harassment from bettors in recent years.

Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY) organized the roundtable discussion in his home district in support of his federal sports betting legislation, the SAFE Bet Act. The legislation calls for an outright ban on college prop betting and includes other restrictions on advertising.

“The embarrassing thing is the public messages that are directed at the players because a lot of times they don’t feel like they can defend themselves,” Siena men’s basketball coach Gerry McNamara said. “There was always a fanatic component, but now you have the financial component (with sports betting), and that is where the threats get more serious.”

College sports betting conversation

A recent NCAA study found abusive comments related to sports betting and match-fixing made up more than 12% of the social media abuse directed at college athletes, coaches and officials during championships in 2023 and 2024.

“We got ripped into a lot last year on social media and in my (direct messages) as an individual,” Brendan Coyle, a junior forward on the men’s basketball team, said. “It was a variety of things from death threats to fans being upset after a loss.”

Other athletes on the panel said they have not personally received hateful social media messages but have seen threats directed at teammates. McNamara, who won a national championship with Syracuse University in 2003, said this is a new challenge for today’s athletes and not something he experienced without legal sports betting during his college career.

College prop bet bans take shape

NCAA President Charlie Baker is pushing states to prohibit sportsbooks from offering college prop bets. States including Ohio, Louisiana, Maryland, and Vermont implemented bans this year, and several other states have considered doing the same.

New York and Massachusetts sports betting regulators barred college prop betting before their markets launched.

When asked how a college prop betting ban would curtail social media harassment, Tonko told LSR that removing bets on college athletes would limit how much bettors might target an individual player.

Does public want federal oversight for problem gambling?

Siena College Research Institute director Dr. Don Levy cited his organization’s American Sports Fanship Survey during Thursday’s roundtable.

The February 2024 survey found that 61% of respondents supported federal regulation to address problem gambling.

Levy said the research institute plans to update the survey again this winter.

Key components of federal bill

Co-sponsored with Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Tonko’s SAFE Bet Act aims to regulate sports betting in three areas:

“States have legalized mobile sports betting but with no guardrails and no restraints, making it possible for this Wild West environment to continue,” Tonko said. “The layer upon that is micro betting where every (aspect of the game) can be bet on. It’s no longer just ‘will Siena beat its opponent?’”

Sports betting practices under the microscope

The SAFE Bet Act would limit sports betting advertising to times and spaces when children are not likely to be in the audience. New York sports betting regulators, and others nationwide, recently took action on advertising practices.

The SAFE Bet Act would also require sportsbooks to implement deposit limits:

Sportsbooks would also be unable to use artificial intelligence to create gambling products. For example, operators would no longer be able to have AI-generated pricing for live betting.

Sports betting bill faces challenges

Congressional colleagues and industry stakeholders criticized the SAFE Bet Act last month.

Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), who represents the Las Vegas Strip, said the bill is perhaps well-intentioned but misguided.

Tonko admits the bill is not a high priority for members, especially in a lame-duck session. He plans to file the bill again next year and hopes to drum up enough support for it to pass.

Photo by AP/Adrian Kraus