The NCAA Issues Updated Sports Betting Penalties for Athletes

Article ByDavid Weir

June 29, 2023

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Posted in: US Sports Betting News, US Gambling News

The National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) has announced a significant revision of its disciplinary policy for athletes who breach its rules against sports betting.

The new guidelines, officially published on Wednesday, are less stringent than the previous rules. Instead of blanket bans and suspensions, they are more nuanced, with different punishments for various levels of rule breaking.

The new rules will retroactively apply to all violations reported on or after May 2.

The NCAA’s decision to update its policies comes in response to the widespread legalization of mobile sports betting, and a series of scandals involving college sports and betting.

Modernizing Penalties

Under the previous policy, athletes who violated the NCAA’s betting rules often lost a full season of collegiate eligibility.

The new guidelines introduce a more selective approach.

“These new guidelines modernize penalties for college athletes at a time when sports wagering has been legalized in dozens of states and is easily accessible nationwide with online betting platforms,” said Alex Ricker-Gilbert, athletic director at Jacksonville University and chair of the NCAA’s D1 Legislative Committee, in the official NCAA press release.

“Sports wagering by college athletes is still a concern — particularly as we remain committed to preserving the integrity of competition in college sports — (but) consideration of mitigating factors is appropriate as staff prescribe penalties for young people who have made mistakes in this space.”

The most severe penalties will be reserved for those who compromise the integrity of games.

Athletes or staff who influence the outcome of games for betting purposes or provide information to bettors could face a permanent loss of collegiate eligibility in all sports.

That applies even for athletes betting on other college teams.

Season Eligibility

If an athlete places a bet on another school’s team in the same sport they participate in, they could face a suspension of up to 50% of one season of eligibility.

They’ll also be required to attend educational sessions on the NCAA’s betting rules.

The penalties for other wagering violations, like betting on professional sports, will depend on the cumulative amount of money wagered by the rule breaker.

For instance, if an athlete bets $200 or less on professional sports, they’ll be required to be educated on the NCAA’s sports wagering rules, but won’t lose eligibility.

Total wagers of $201-$500 can result in a 10% loss of a season’s eligibility.

Wagering $501-$800 can result in a 20% loss of a season’s worth of eligibility, and total wagers on professional sports of more than $800 can cost a student-athlete 30% of a season.

Preserving Integrity

The NCAA remains committed to preserving the integrity of college sports.

However, its updated policy is a significant step towards acknowledging the changing landscape of sports betting in the U.S.

This latest announcement is just part of the Association’s ongoing effort.

“The council directed the national office to continue to explore issues around rules education and integrity monitoring and requested additional updates on these topics,” said the new rules press release.

The NCAA’s measured and well-documented approach to sports betting rules is something other US sports orgs might be looking at.

Recently, we reported that some NFL Compliance Team members said players and staff weren’t receiving enough education on the league’s gambling policy. That followed June’s news that an investigation has been launched into the Indianapolis Colts’ Isiah Rodger for “pervasive wagering activities”.