The Mid-American Conference (MAC) has licensed the rights to its data and stats through Genius Sports, which will sell the data to sportsbooks.
Others will follow when they see how much money they can earn, and there isn’t much the NCAA can do to change course now that players are able to cash in on their fame, according to the Associated Press.
That said, those involved in college sports still can’t bet.
“They were able to turn the other way before and say, ‘Oh, that’s all happening over here.’ But the second you’re directly getting paid from sports betting, it also comes with some responsibilities,” said Matthew Holt of U.S. Integrity, a company that works with professional sports leagues and college conferences to monitor for gambling improprieties.
Holt said college sports is more open to betting scandals due to the absence of transparency about player availability, endorsement deals for athletes involving boosters, and the potential for unpaid players to cash in by placing a bet on themselves.
“What we’ve done, in fact, is brought sports wagering out of the dark corners and put sunshine on it and more transparency on it. And more eyes on it. That’s a positive, that’s not a negative,” MAC Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher said.
Navigate, a Chicago-based firm that does research and data analysis for professional sports leagues and college conferences, estimated that the MAC-Genius agreement could be worth up to $1.5 million per year. Other, larger conferences such as the SEC could make $20 million and the Big Ten $15 million from similar deals.
Holt spoke at college conference meetings in Arizona last month, warning of the potential for corruption in this new world. Unlike the NFL, college conferences do not have to disclose injury status and player availability. But someone has to know, and that person can be a bribery target.
“So, I do think that the collegian space, if they’re going to open up this category for revenue and monetization, needs to take the responsibility to take a step forward in injury information and availability reporting,” Holt said.
Holt recommends limitations on betting on the same athletes they are paying for endorsements.
“Say you have Tommy’s Used Car Shop giving the quarterback at name the university $100,000 a year and an NIL (deal),” Holt said. “Well, the owner of Tommy’s Used Car Shop should not be able to bet on that university. It’s a conflict of interest. He has a direct influence over the player.”
Most concerning is athletes betting on themselves, especially with prop bets, based on reaching individual goals in a game. Athletes can control their own performances.
“And it’s easier for fixsters to approach those players because they don’t have to ask the player to fix a match,” Holt said.
Holt convinced three states to pass laws that make prop bets on college games illegal.
“The other 30 said, ‘Thanks for the wonderful information, Matt, but DraftKings, FanDuel and Caesars, who have big lobbyists, they wanted it and they win,’” Holt said.
