Where Is the Line? Sports Betting Regulators Need to Act Now to Protect the Player

Adam Chernoff is asking regulators to step in and protect sports bettors. It has been four years since PASPA was repealed and today, legal sports betting in the USA is offered in 30 different states. Canada passed Bill C-218 last summer and Ontario sportsbetting currently features 15 regulated operators.

The Ontario iGaming regulations became official on April 4, 2022. At the launch party in Toronto, politicians, retired athletes, and media analysts were talking about legalizing sports betting. The player was not mentioned. Most big sportsbetting brands spend money on advertisements to generate revenue. Regulators' main purpose is to make sure they count every dollar and take the government cut. The days of putting the player first are dead.

DraftKings CEO Jason Robbins said that people who are doing this for profit are not the players we want.

Regulators across North America do not have any regulations around posting clear limits or bet acceptance. This allows sportsbooks to bait bettors with lines that are offered without upfront betting limits. Last month, James Salinas tried to bet $3,000 on the 2022 NFL Draft at Barstool Sportsbook in Colorado. Bar stool reduced his bet from $3000 to $800 and told him to place it at worse odds. Salina walked out of the sportsbook without placing any bet. Bar Stool founder Dave Portnoy replied, "I don't care about that guy".

Dave complained when Robinhood app blocked his wagers.

Sportsbooks should not have to approve every bet that bettors make.

BetRegal is the official sport gaming partner of the Canadian Football League. It has brand ambassador deals with some of football's most recognizable players and broadcasts commercials across Canadian television.

BetRegal took bets on the Ottawa Redblacks and Toronto Argonauts game on Friday, May 27th. Ottawa won the game 23-17. BetRegals account was deactivated two hours after the match and the bets were voided. The sportsbook had eight hours to void the bettors' money. It only discovered the mistake at 11:50 p.m. ET.

BetRegal opened Ottawa as a 14.5-point underdog. A player bet on Ottawa +14. 5 and won $3,165. Ottawa won the game 23-17.

BetRegal took money from player accounts and canceled all winning bets. It will give the money back after a well-known CFL podcaster and a sports network in Canada wrote to BetRegals to dispute its actions. It is a good story for the betting community in the CFL. The company takes its sponsorship with the league seriously.

Sportsbook has hurt a customer. It's open season for them until their sponsorship dollars get questioned.

Adam Chernoff is writing his first article in a long time tomorrow. He witnessed the dirtiest thing he's ever seen a sportsbook do to its players.

BetRegal moved the line after the bets were made and then voided the bet two hours later. BetRegals is not regulated in Ontario. AGCO does not have a specific standard to protect players from this type of behavior. The most applicable standard for this is in Section 4.06-10.

BetRegal moved the line after the bets were made. The bets had been made 8 hours before the game. BetRegals biggest sponsorship deal threatened customer support.

BetRegal claims to have the authority to rule any bets it deems as errors no action and correct any bet to "reasonable market value".

Sports Betting Regulators need to act now to protect the player.

Sports betting regulations in Ontario are not clear enough. Bet365 cancelled bets on the St. Louis Blues and Colorado Avalanche series. Sports Interaction offered odds on whether the first-overall pick in the CFL Draft would be traded. It was only after the trade was made official that SIA decided to void the bets. Bwin allowed a bettor to deposit $500 but limited him to a max sports bet of $1.34. The better threatened to file a complaint with the Ontario regulators. The bwin decided not to allow the bettors to withdraw his money.

Regulated sportsbook operators can say anything about the player and change the odds of a bet after it is placed. They can limit players to a max bet of $1.34.

Say anything about the player and encourage winners to be banned to appease shareholders. Change the odds of a bet after it is placed, without the customer’s permission. Limit players to a max bet of $1.34.

Regulators need to act now to protect the player. The legal sports betting industry needs customers in order to thrive. Operators have been given the freedom to treat customers badly. Regulators should step in and make changes to prevent this. It is not how the regulated sportsbetting industry works in 2022.

In almost every situation, the intentional ambiguity of gaming regulations puts the power back in the hands of the operator.

BetRegal made a mistake on Friday, May 27th when it posted a line on a CFL preseason game. The error was compounded when wagers were canceled after the game and the bets were reinstated.