Speaking to Entain’s SVP of American Regulatory Affairs & Responsible Gambling Martin Lycka as part of the SBC Summit North America Player Protection Symposium, Hicks cited data from ethical data group and NCAA partner Signify collected during March Madness earlier this year.
Around 2,000 incidents of bettor harassment this March Madness
Hicks said the group counted 50,000 incidents of athlete harassment online, 4,000 of which were serious enough to be turned over to the platform, law enforcement, or, in some cases, both.
Of those 4,000, roughly half could be tied back to sports betting, which explains why Hicks and the NCAA have become increasingly focused on athlete protection as it develops and expands its sports betting protocols.
“The policies that went into NCAA legislation years and years ago were really integrity-focused, but ..