With sports betting legal in 30 states and more than half of college-age students reporting having placed a bet, the NCAA’s concerns are real. The proliferation of sports wagering poses unique challenges in college athletics, threatening the health and well-being of student-athletes as well as the integrity of competition.
The Supreme Court’s ruling in 2022 threw open the door to sports gambling, overturning a 1992 federal law that had banned it in most states. The ruling has brought with it a new approach to how the NFL, NBA and MLB handle their relationships with sportsbooks.
Official betting is betting done by a bookmaker on a particular event or team. It can be done by phone, online or at a physical location. In the case of a live game, the odds are updated in real time. In order to get the best odds, it’s important to understand the terminology used in sports betting. For example, if the number that appears first is smaller (such as +350 or +500), then it’s the favorite to win the game. The number that comes second is the underdog to win the game.
The NHL has no specific policies regarding where players and employees can bet on non-NHL events, provided that the activity is legal in their jurisdiction. However, any form of wager that places a player or employee at risk of violating the league’s anti-gambling policy, such as seeking, offering, accepting or soliciting a bribe to fix a game, can result in a permanent expulsion from the sport.