The American Gaming Association is working with members on the possibility of forming an association to monitor data from U.S. sports betting with the purpose of safeguarding the integrity of sports wagers.
According to a report in ESPN.com the AGA is collaborating on a “robust suspicious information sharing repository.”
“The AGA has had productive discussions with our members and the leagues about the formation of an integrity monitoring association, which would provide an enhanced reporting system,
wrote AGA Senior Vice President Sara Slane, according to ESPN.com.
Integrity of sports has been a major concern since the May U.S. Supreme Court decision removing the federal ban on sports betting, with the leagues claiming the need to spend money on systems to ensure integrity as a main reason they should get a cut of the money from wagers, many advocates calling them “integrity fees.”
“We believe a federal requirement that all parties share information is best suited to benefit sports integrity,” Andy Levinson, senior vice president of the PGA Tour, told ESPN in a phone interview. “Such a holistic approach would be a three-way street of transparency between sports leagues, regulators, and betting providers.”
The AGA is suggesting a system in which sports betting operators could use a neutral association as a clearinghouse of data in response to U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s earlier recommendation that sports betting operators should be required to “notify each other of suspicious or abnormal activity or any other conduct that corrupts a betting outcome of a sporting event.”
Schumer made the suggestion in a push to establish congressional action to create federal oversight or sports betting. The AGA sent a letter to Schumer on September 13 in which it reiterated its position that sports betting regulation should be left to the states.
“AGA has long been a leading advocate for eliminating the vast illegal sports betting market in the U.S., which was largely enabled by the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA),” the letter stated. “We believe this can best be achieved through law enforcement oversight and robust state regulation. AGA firmly believes that additional federal engagement is not warranted at this time.”
