North America

The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) is requesting prediction markets to promote its new problem gambling helpline amid the growing popularity of event contracts.

The NCPG’s board of directors has made a request to all prediction market operators accepting customers in the U.S. to promote 1-800-MY-RESET, the council’s new National Problem Gambling Helpline™. The NCPG is calling on all prediction markets that are approved to offer event contracts, including sports, to provide clear and concise messaging to promote its problem gambling helpline. The council wants prediction markets to take the same steps in promoting responsible gaming resources as licensed online sportsbooks.

“Prediction markets have proliferated at an outstanding rate and, so far, there are minimal regulations and safeguards to protect consumers, despite carrying substantially similar levels of risk as traditional sports betting,” said the NCPG in a statement to SBC Americas. “All operators offering gambli..

Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown filed a lawsuit this week against Aristocrat and Playtika, alleging that the two companies and their subsidiaries are operating unlicensed social casino apps that equate to gambling.

Stressing that Washington has a statewide ban on all online gambling activities, the King County Superior Court filing dated Feb. 3 claims that the two companies have allowed state residents to spend more than $225 million over the last five years on “gambling activities that are banned in the state.”

The filing names various Playtika-branded companies as well as Aristocrat Leisure, Aristocrat Technologies and the company’s Product Madness, Big Fish Games, Plarium and Pixel United gaming subsidiaries as defendants. Washington and Brown are seeking a declaration that the companies’ operations violate Washington’s Gambling Act and Consumer Protection Act, as well as a preliminary and/or permanent injunction, civil penalties and other restitution.

Companies kno..

New documents reportedly suggest that the alleged match-fixing scheme involving two Cleveland Guardians pitchers is much more extensive than originally thought.

According to an ESPN report, Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase allegedly manipulated his own pitches in nearly 50 games for the purposes of receiving kickbacks. According to court documents filed in November, Clase and teammate Luis Ortiz allegedly conspired with a group of people to rig specific pitches based on speed and location.

The scheme allegedly allowed the co-conspirators to profit from wagers placed using information provided by Clase and Ortiz. Clase and Ortiz’s alleged involvement in the scheme led to charges of wire fraud conspiracy, bribery and money laundering.

Clase initially suspected over 9 games

In court documents filed last year, federal prosecutors initially tied 27-year-old Dominican Republic native Clase to suspicions of rigging pitches in nine games over two years. That number has now been more than ..

U.S. military service members and the gaming industry are expected to receive a major boost sparked by the looming signature of the latest Defense Appropriations Act.

The Defense Appropriations Act for FY2026, a bill that provides $838.7 billion in total spending, will provide federal government funding for gambling addiction research. The act allows federal funding to be used for gambling addiction research for the very first time.

The bill provides federal funding to research gambling addiction in both active and veteran military members through the Department of Defense’s Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program (PRMRP), which provides grants for medical research and treatments.

Each year, Congress provides a list of conditions and treatments that are covered under the program. In FY2025, Congress allocated approximately $150 million toward the PRMRP.

“This is an important step forward,” said National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) Executive Director Heather Maurer. “For the f..

A lawmaker in Tennessee introduced a piece of legislation to combat the manipulation of events tied to prediction market trading.

Sen. Ferrell Haile filed Senate Bill 1992 last week, proposing a penalty for anyone “who engages in conduct intended to influence the outcome of an event while the person or another is a party to a contract with a prediction-market by which the person will benefit, directly or indirectly, from the occurrence of the outcome.” SB 1992 amends Tennessee code to make any person who violates SB 1992 guilty of a Class E felony.

Under Tennessee law, a Class E felony subjects offenders to a prison term that ranges between one and six years, with fines that can reach up to $3,000. A Class E felony is the state’s lowest felony class and includes white color or fraud-related crimes. Crimes also associated with Class E felonies include theft of property and drug and gun possession.

Tennessee regulator’s stance on sports event contracts

Haile has filed SB 1992 as the ..

BetMGM is combating harassment toward athletes by implementing a new policy.

The MGM Resorts and Entain joint venture announced an update to its terms of service with a ban on harassment directed toward athletes. BetMGM’s previous versions of its terms of service prohibited harassment, but the operator is now taking the step to explicitly ban gambling-related harm directed at athletes amid recent calls to action by key stakeholders to protect athletes nationwide.

“We are unwavering in our commitment to sports integrity—and that commitment extends to safeguarding athletes, coaches and league personnel,” said BetMGM Chief Compliance Officer Rhea Loney. “Our legal, regulated environment enables us to identify misconduct, investigate reports, and take action when necessary. Any confirmed instance of harassment will result in decisive measures, including account suspension.”

BetMGM’s policy update imposes an immediate suspension on customer accounts found to direct abusive or harassing m..

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine reignited his claim that online sports betting is detrimental to the well-being of state residents and the athletes who partake in competition.

In a conversation with Cleveland.com, DeWine discussed important key topics impacting Ohioans, including the operational tactics of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, cannabis and online sports betting. DeWine welcomed sports betting to Ohio in 2021 after signing a piece of legislation that legalized the vertical in the state. Five years later, DeWine considers his signature of the bill his “biggest regret” as governor.

DeWine is taking this tone against legalized sports betting after not realizing the impact gambling can have on young people, particularly young men. The governor voiced concerns about addiction rates and the proliferation of gambling-related ads in the media.

DeWine considers the issues to be “his fault”.

Alleged scandals impact the perception of sports betting

DeWine also pointed to the re..

New York lawmakers are continuing to legislative action to protect amateur and professional athletes from harassment and harm.

The Empire State is considering a pair of anti-harassment bills that provide gambling-related penalties for individuals who harass athletes, officials, or coaches in the state.

Sen. Toby Stavisky is having his anti-harassment measure, Senate Bill 7482, reconsidered in 2026 as a carryover from the first year of New York’s two-year legislative session.

Stavisky’s bill proposes potential wagering ban

SB 7482 proposes amending New York’s racing, parimutuel wagering and breeding law to consider anyone “found to have harassed or shown a harmful pattern of conduct directed at amateur or professional athletes, coaches, officials or participants of a sports event” a prohibited sports bettor in the state. The piece of legislation covers any threats that are verbal, written or electronic and any conduct that “would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emot..

After losing the right to use 1-800-GAMBLER, the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) is leaning on what it hopes will be another memorable number to use as its latest trademarked national problem gambling helpline.

The NCPG announced on Thursday that the new 1-800-MY-RESET service is now live and operational 24/7 to receive calls across the country. The national nonprofit organization said that the adoption of the new number strengthens the national visibility of the NCPG-run helpline and also supports its ongoing network modernization efforts.

“Problem gambling support should never be limited to a single moment or a single definition of harm,” said NCPG Board President Derek Longmeier. “1-800-MY-RESET reinforces that the National Problem Gambling Helpline is available at any stage — whether someone is worried about themselves, concerned about a family member or simply looking for trusted guidance. Making the helpline number easier to remember is a practical, meaningful step ..