SBC Americas

NY judge doesn’t buy argument that DraftKings promos were misleading

Notch another one in the win column for DraftKings, as Southern District of New York Judge Denise Cote dismissed a class action lawsuit against the sportsbook over its promotions.

After prevailing in a similar lawsuit in the Eastern District of New York in July, Cote’s ruling drew many of the same conclusions as the judge drew in that case. Both cases observed that there were clear opportunities for the plaintiffs to read the terms of service surrounding the $1,000 deposit bonus and the “No Sweat” bet, so they cannot argue that DraftKings was misleading in how these offers were presented.

Plaintiffs didn’t have a specific DK ad in mind

Cote also pushed back at the suit because the plaintiffs could not point to the exact advertisement the plaintiffs had seen. The plaintiffs tried to argue that didn’t makker because all of the ads are relatively the same, but Cote said a specific example is necessary in order to state a claim.

She went into more detail on other elements of the case, ..

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NCAA gambling probe extends to former San Francisco student-athlete

The NCAA investigation into sports betting violations at Fresno State led to the discovery of similar infractions at another California university.

Former University of San Francisco men’s basketball guard Marcus Williams was found to have violated the NCAA’s rules related to sports betting by knowingly providing information to a third-party for gambling-related purposes. Williams shared information with former Fresno State men’s basketball player Mykell Robinson, who was dismissed from the university and ruled permanently ineligible by the NCAA for manipulating his performances during games to win bets.

The NCAA initiated an investigation into Williams after their probe into Robinson revealed communication between the two players. The communication included Williams providing information for Robinson to wager on him.

Robinson leveraged daily fantasy sports accounts to place bets on Williams. The NCAA did not disclose which gaming platform Robinson used to place the wagers. NCAA ga..

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PCH owner ARB Interactive strengthens legal & public policy teams

The owner of Publishers Clearing House is bolstering its legal and public policy teams as it plans to expand its reach in the social plus gaming space.

New hires come with casino backgrounds

ARB Interactive announced the appointment of veteran attorney Bryan P. Schroeder as general counsel and the hiring of public policy expert Steve Arthur as vice president of government affairs. Schroeder joins ARB Interactive after serving as vice president of compliance at Hard Rock Digital. The executive also had a two-year stint as senior vice president of compliance & legal at Tipico after spending over a decade at Parx Casino.

At Parx Casino, Schroeder held various roles, including deputy general counsel.

“Bryan brings an extraordinary depth of expertise across the full spectrum of gaming law, regulatory, compliance, operations, online gaming and corporate governance,” said ARB Interactive CEO Patrick Fechtmeyer. “His experience guiding organizations through rapidly evolving regulatory lan..

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Fanatics Sportsbook enlists OpenBet for geolocation and compliance

Fanatics Betting and Gaming has partnered with betting technology provider OpenBet to launch the supplier’s suite of geolocation, fraud prevention, AML and responsible gaming tools on its sportsbook platform.

Fanatics Sportsbook will deploy OpenBet’s full Protect Suite, which includes OpenBet Locator and the AI-enhanced responsible gaming and AML platform Neccton.

“The OpenBet Locator and Neccton products deliver a secure and frictionless experience for our customers,” said Fanatics Chief Business Officer Ari Borod. “When we launched, we stated that our intention would be to innovate on the tech side, and we have now delivered two critical integrations in Neccton and OpenBet Locator to enhance our player protection framework and our geolocation needs.”

Rollout reflects Fanatics’ expansion

Fanatics Sportsbook now operates in 22 U.S. states plus D.C., a geographical spread that the operator said exposes it to close to 95% of the total addressable online sports betting market. It most..

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Kalshi now dealing with class action lawsuits as well

Kalshi’s list of legal battles now includes one with citizens in addition to state governments.

Last week, a group of individuals from across the United States filed a class action against the site related to its offering of sports-related event contracts.

Filed in the Southern District of New York, it is the second such lawsuit filed in the district, following one that was filed in October. The law firm representing the plaintiffs in the first lawsuit is the Almeida Law Group, a firm that is no stranger to gaming-related class actions. The firm represents the plaintiffs in the pending litigation in California against DraftKings and PrizePicks as well as some sweepstakes-related lawsuits.

The uniting thread of all of the cases is that the product being offered is tantamount to illegal gambling and the plaintiffs are seeking damages and restitution. To date, none of the cases have been resolved.

The plaintiffs in the second lawsuit are represented by Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernste..

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IBIA and PFA Canada work to combat match-fixing in Canadian soccer

The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) and the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Canada continue to work together to safeguard Canadian soccer from match-fixing and integrity concerns, with nearly 200 Canadian Premier League (CPL) players and staff completing integrity training in 2025.

IBIA and PFA Canada have completed the second year of their joint anti-match-fixing education program, part of an initiative funded by a $300,000, three-year investment from IBIA and its members – bet365, Betway and FanDuel. The overarching initiative provides Canadian athletes and sports organizations with access to free, in-person integrity education.

Players and staff across all eight CPL clubs completed integrity training this year, just as they did last year.

Real-world experiences
The key aim of the IBIA training is to equip athletes and coaches with the knowledge to identify, avoid and report betting-related integrity risks. The focus on in-person training creates the opportunity to share and discuss real-world experiences, says IBIA.

The ‘Protecting the Integrity of the Game’ player education program is built around three foundational pillars of rules, responsibility and reporting. Those 3Rs cover the key information every athlete should know about sports betting-related match-fixing. In addition to highlighting the potential threats from sports betting-related match-fixing, the program educated players on rules and sanctions, the scale and accuracy of technology-enabled sports integrity monitoring and how to report incidents.

“Preventing sports betting-related match-fixing starts with educating the athletes and coaches,” said IBIA CEO Khalid Ali. “Through collaborative campaigns, industry-funded initiatives and unique face-to-face training, IBIA is setting the global standard for athlete education on betting integrity, in line with our Mission 2030 strategy. Alongside regulation and monitoring, it is very important that player education is placed at the heart of a maturing Canadian sports betting integrity ecosystem.

“We’re pleased to see this program delivering real impact. Everyone benefits when sports are clean.”

Resources like IBIA’s work are ‘beyond integral’
“The IBIA sports integrity training was super informative for our players, providing essential information on the rules of sports betting, the consequences of being involved, and ways to report any illegal activity,” added Vancouver FC captain and six-year CPL veteran goalkeeper Callum Irving. “Resources like the IBIA are beyond integral to safeguarding our sport and locker rooms from sports betting-related match-fixing.”

IBIA is a not-for-profit association funded by operators committed to safeguarding betting integrity. Its Global Monitoring & Alert Platform (Global MAP) uses operator intelligence from 90+ members to identify and share alerts on suspicious betting across regulated online sports wagering markets worldwide. Its model enables intelligence sharing between operators, sports governing bodies, regulators and law enforcement to help prevent the manipulation of sports and betting markets through athlete education, policy guidance and by promoting integrity standards.

IBIA and PFA Canada will continue their joint work in 2026. IBIA Education Ambassador Jean-Francois Reymond said the association looks forward to partnering with additional Canadian sports organizations to help safeguard the integrity of Canadian sport.

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Maryland lawmaker reportedly wants to consider a ban on micro bets

A lawmaker in Maryland wants the state to consider prohibiting micro betting as a professional sports league deals with allegations of game manipulation by athletes.

According to a report from The Baltimore Sun, House of Delegates member Jason Buckel wants the state to consider banning or changing rules related to micro bets as MLB deals with a gambling scandal tied to the alleged manipulation of pitch-level markets.

“We definitely should take a strong look at it [micro betting],” Buckel told The Baltimore Sun. “I believe the best course of action would be to either outright ban those types of individual-play prop bets or to very significantly limit the amount that could be wagered on those types of sporting activities.”

Buckel wants Maryland to consider a ban on micro bets after MLB warned state gaming regulators in 2021 about the risks associated with offering the betting markets. MLB pointed directly to the risk of offering pitch-level markets and called for discussions on the ma..

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NCAA to maintain restriction on professional sports gambling

The NCAA is no longer considering a rule change that would have allowed its student-athletes to wager on professional sports.

The governing body of college sports announced that its Division I member schools voted to rescind an approved rule change that would have lifted a ban on pro sports betting.

DI institutions had the opportunity to rescind the rule change as part of the NCAA’s protocols, which allow DI schools to vote whether to rescind an approved rule change within 30 days if a proposal doesn’t receive at least 75% of votes from the DI Board.

Last month, the board voted to adopt the proposal, but with fewer than 75% of the votes.

The lack of votes allowed DI member institutions to vote on the issue, with two-thirds of the schools voting against lifting the NCAA’s ban on pro sports betting.

The NCAA considered a change of stance regarding pro sports betting as its bylaws “were written and adopted at a time when sports gambling was largely illegal nationwide,” said Universit..

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MLB to respond to Senate committee request about gambling probe

The MLB was quick with a response to a request from the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee to answer questions regarding the manipulation of games following a new gambling scandal for America’s oldest professional sports league.

Last week, Committee Chairman Ted Cruz and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell sent a letter to MLB requesting written responses to several questions regarding MLB gambling rules, communication with operators and the ongoing probe into Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz. According to court documents, the pitchers are charged with wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery and money laundering conspiracy for allegedly rigging pitches during games and receiving kickbacks. Cruz and Cantwell requested responses from MLB on the matter by Dec. 5.

“We’re going to respond fully and cooperatively and on time to the Senate inquiry,” said MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred during a news conference at an owners me..

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NCAA study finds men’s basketball leads in gambling harassment

A recent NCAA study found that men’s basketball players receive the highest rate of gambling-related harassment among the organization’s body of student-athletes.

In October, the NCAA conducted a Student-Athlete Needs, Aspirations and Perspectives (SNAP) study providing feedback from student-athletes about a variety of issues impacting their daily lives. Between Sept. 30 and Oct 5., the NCAA partnered with sports employment platform Teamworks to deliver the survey to 6,789 students across 163 institutions. The NCAA offers SNAP surveys to institutions up to six times per year.

The NCAA’s latest SNAP survey for October included topics on performance technology, mental health and fan behavior related to sports betting. It was limited to student-athletes in their sophomore year or above for their experiences related to fan engagement.

Men’s basketball leads the pack

The October 2025 NCAA SNAP survey had men’s basketball players lead all student-athletes who receive negative or threaten..

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