Nowadays, it’s pretty hard to escape sports betting promos and marketing, especially as the top bookmakers in the U.S. continue to form new partnerships with celebrities, sports leagues and players, and in some cases, colleges and universities.
This practice is gaining in popularity, and regulators and state officials are none too happy about it. One official, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal from Connecticut, recently went so far as to send a letter to 66 schools across the country with the largest athletic budgets requesting further details and information regarding their partnerships with various bookmakers.
The letter also requested additional information about what resources the schools have in place to combat issues such as underage and problem gambling.
Blumenthal warned the schools that the “opportunity for lucrative deals has caused some casinos and sportsbooks to target universities, despite the very real harm gambling poses to students, many under the age to legally gamble.”
The senator’s call for transparency follows a New York Times article from late last year that detailed the rising number of partnerships between schools and bookmakers, and how campuses across the country are becoming “Caesarized” with betting ads and promos.
The article revealed that at least eight schools had made deals with online sports betting operators, and at least another dozen had similar agreements with land-based casinos.
Perhaps the most notable and most scrutinized partnership is that between Michigan State University and Caesars Sportsbook—the two sides inked a five-year, $8.4 million deal in 2021 through which the school would promote Caesars’ brand and, as the Times put it, “Caesarize” the tailgating area near the school’s football stadium.
In his letter, Blumenthal pointed out that the deal allotted just $25,000 for educational services on gambling for athletes, but no funds for student services.
Of course, operators have repeatedly denied any attempts to target underage bettors, but there have been multiple examples of regulatory violations.
Late last year, Penn Entertainment received a $250,000 fine from Ohio regulators after its subsidiary, Barstool Sportsbook, hosted an event at the University of Toledo during which Barstool employees encouraged students to pre-register with its app.
In another instance, staff members from Louisiana State University sent an email to underage students advertising free bet promotions—the school said afterwards that the email was sent by mistake.
Blumenthal laid out a one-month timetable for the schools to provide additional information regarding the partnerships, including the amount of correspondence they had with regulatory bodies, anticipated earnings and more.
It is unclear at this time which schools, if any, will comply with the senator’s request.
In response to rising scrutiny, some schools have already made changes to existing deals. The University of Colorado, Boulder, for example, recently amended its agreement with bookmaker PointsBet to remove a referral bonus in which the school would receive a sum of $30 for every new account that was formed with the school’s promo code.
