SBC Americas - Player Protection Hub

Ohtani clears the air on sports betting and fraud allegations

SBC AmericasMarch 26, 20240205 views

MLB superstar Shohei Ohtani has denied any wrongdoing following allegations of his former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara stealing millions from him to wager on sports.

Ohtani spoke to the media on Monday for the first time since allegations were made against his former confidant, Mizuhara, who allegedly partcipated in an illegal gambling operation run by California resident and bookie Matthew Bowyer. According to the LA Times, Mizuhara allegedly siphoned at least $4.5 million from Ohtani’s bank account to cover gambling losses. Mizuhara had previously told authorities the money was transferred by Ohtani.

“I’ve never bet on baseball or any other sports or asked someone to do it on my behalf,” said Ohtani during Monday’s press conference. “I’ve never asked a bookmaker to do it on my behalf. Up until a few days ago, I didn’t know this was happening. In conclusion, Ippei has been stealing money from my account and has told lies.”

Ohtani was first informed of Mizuhara’s allegedly stealing la..

OddsJam launches RG partnership with Birches Health

SBC AmericasMarch 25, 20240250 views

Sports betting data platform OddsJam has partnered with responsible gaming and behavioral health treatment company Birches Health to offer resources, education and care for problem gambling addictions.

All OddsJam users will now have easy access to a wide selection of responsible gaming resources and treatment services. Birches Health aims to help problem gamblers who would otherwise have been unable to access care through traditional channels immediately get the support they need.

The service provides a program covered by insurance and the government and run by a clinical team with decades of experience in gambling-specialized care.

“OddsJam is passionate about educating our users to bet smarter by focusing on value when it comes to decision-making, so working with Birches Health is a win-win,” said OddsJam CEO Matt Restivo. “We have a duty to partner with entities in our space who are doing the right thing, and Birches Health is the epitome of this philosophy.”

“We are thrilled ..

NCPG awards Tipico first sportsbook compliance accreditation

SBC AmericasMarch 25, 20240216 views

Tipico Sportsbook is making history as an operator in America’s gaming market.

The Malta-based operator has earned Internet Compliance Assessment Program (iCAP) accreditation in New Jersey and Ohio becoming the first sportsbook in the U.S. to receive the accreditation for best practices in consumer protection. Tipico earned the iCAP accreditation following the launch of its Fair Play Pledge, a first-of-its-kind initiative that aims to foster a safe and enjoyable betting experience for users while maximizing value.

The National Council on Problem Gambling is the administrator of iCAP accreditations.

“ICAP accreditation is a meaningful award for Tipico because it validates our approach to make fair play a companywide initiative that requires buy-in by our employees,” said Tipico Compliance & Legal SVP Bryan Schroeder in a statement. “I am incredibly proud of our team for rallying around our efforts to continuously improve safety and clarity. Our primary goal is to ensure customers hav..

ESPN host slammed for ‘risk-free’ betting comment

SBC AmericasMarch 25, 20240198 views

ESPN host Rece Davis is under fire for equating a college basketball wager to a “risk-free investment.”

During an ESPN Bet segment on Sunday, betting analyst Erin Dolan and Davis were discussing the rationale of betting the under for a team’s total points in a March Madness matchup between UConn and Northwestern. Dolan explained her decision to bet Northwestern to score under 60.5 points in which Davis replied with a controversial comment.

“Some would call this wagering, gambling. I think the way you’ve sold this; I think what it is, is a risk-free investment,” said Davis during the segment.

Davis describing a sports wager as a risk-free investment is an issue that continues to be a topic of discussion throughout America’s regulated gambling industry.

In 2022, FanDuel and DraftKings eliminated “risk-free” and “free bet” terminology in their marketing following criticism of advertising practices in gambling.

Last year, New York became the first jurisdiction in the U.S. to take le..

NCAA launches gambling harm education campaign

SBC AmericasMarch 22, 20240219 views

The NCAA is continuing to protect its student-athletes from gambling harm.

The governing body of college sports has launched Draw the Line, a campaign aimed at educating student-athletes on the effects of sports betting. The campaign, which debuted during the start of March Madness, will also address problem gambling.

“Sports betting is everywhere, especially on college campuses, so it’s critical student-athletes get the real story about how it can impact them and their ability to play,” said NCAA President Charlie Baker. “We know some bettors are harassing student-athletes and officials, so that’s why we are advocating for policy changes at the state level and launching monitoring tools around championships to refer serious threats to law enforcement.”

The NCAA’s new campaign comes during the governing body’s most profitable event, March Madness. The three-week men’s and women’s tournament will see the NCAA generate approximately $1 billion in revenue, which is roughly 85% of its a..

Kindbridge expands problem gambling partnership with DraftKings

SBC AmericasMarch 21, 20240278 views

DraftKings is continuing to invest in efforts to curtail problem gambling.

The Boston-based company has announced an expanded partnership with Kindbridge Behavioral Health to provide therapy and treatment for problem gambling in all operational sports betting and iGaming markets. The resources for users in 25 states build on a previous relationship established between DraftKings and Kindbridge.

In 2023, DraftKings and Kindbridge partnered to launch a pilot program in Colorado.

“We appreciate the opportunity to deepen our collaboration with Kindbridge Behavioral Health and strengthen our commitment to providing important resources to those experiencing potential indications of problem gaming,” said DraftKings Chief Compliance Officer Jennifer Aguiar. “We want everyone on our platform to engage in responsible play and we are committed to educating consumers on the multitude of resources offered.”

DraftKings and Kindbridge are offering services to those impacted by problem gambling fr..

Blumenthal calls out sportsbooks for targeting problem gamblers

SBC AmericasMarch 21, 20240251 views

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal is continuing his scrutiny of American sports betting by demanding that sportsbooks stop what he describes as the targeting of problem gamblers.

In a post published on his website, Blumenthal said he has written to eight major sports betting companies — DraftKings, FanDuel, MGMBet, ESPNBet, Fanatics, Caesars, BetFred, and Bet365 — to demand they stop leveraging data to target problem gamblers with promotions and ads.

Blumenthal has urged companies to make it easier for problem gamblers to remove themselves from online betting platforms.

The timing of his request is not coincidental, with the Democrat rep for Connecticut noting that March Madness is one of the busiest sports betting times of the year. Blumenthal cited the American Gaming Association figures that projected that Americans will wager $2.72 billion on NCAA men’s and women’s college basketball in the next two weeks through legal avenues, around 2.2% of the total handle wagered legally in 20..

TransUnion: Gaming most susceptible US industry to digital fraud

SBC AmericasMarch 21, 20240250 views

Suspected instances of digital fraud rose in the U.S. gaming industry in 2023 and the sector continues to be the most vulnerable in the country, according to the findings of a new report from TransUnion.

The newly released TransUnion 2024 State of Omnichannel Fraud Report found that gaming had the highest rate of suspected digital fraud in the U.S. in 2023 at 10.9%, up 9% year over year.

However, while the American gaming industry’s vulnerability to suspected digital fraud increased, globally, the industry saw a fall of 30% year-over-year, according to TransUnion’s findings. The global information and insights company found that the worldwide rate of suspected digital fraud in gaming is less than half of the U.S. industry rate, at 5.3%, but still the third-highest of all industries.

The data also showed that the most common type of fraud seen in the gaming industry in 2023 was promotion abuse, wherein people pretend to be other real or fictitious people to take advantage of sign-up ..

Metro State University launches new course to tackle shortage of problem gambling counselors

SBC AmericasMarch 21, 20240230 views

The rise of online betting in the U.S. is accelerating the issue of problem gambling to the point where there are not enough counselors to deal with the problem.

As a result of this, Metro State University in Minnesota has created a new course that will aim to tackle the problem by instructing future counselors on how to treat problem gambling.

In the state 250,000 people report having problems with gambling yet there are only 19 licensed therapists in the state who are certified to treat the issue.

“It’s a problem that gets exponentially bigger every year, and we need to have the resources and the trained counselors to address this issue,” said course leader Craig Johnson, speaking to FOX 9. “I have almost 30 patients that I see, and I would say about a quarter of them are struggling with sports wagering.”

Johnson explained that the first-of-its-kind class will teach the psychological and physiological aspects of gambling on the body, as well as the impact on families and finance..

Operators need to use AI to identify problem gamblers according to industry specialist

SBC AmericasMarch 20, 20240192 views

Operators need to be more proactive in identifying problem gambling and also use AI tools to aid the process according to industry specialist Jonathan Michaels.

As part of Problem Gambling Awareness Month the principle of Michaels Strategies joined SBC Americas Editor Jessica Welman on an episode of iGaming Daily to discuss his latest LinkedIn article, titled ‘The problem with problem gambling’.

You can listen to the episode here:

Challenges of identifying a problem gambler

Michaels spent some time discussing the difficulty that the industry has identifying problem gamblers and the need to be proactive in identifying problem behavior as it happens rather than in retrospect.

“The issue that exists is there’s no standards on what markers of harm and identification are. There’s no standard on what actually works to help ensure players wager responsibly.”

He believes that the challenge for operators and regulators going forward is to understand what tools will actually work in preven..