Gaming regulators in Massachusetts will conduct a hearing into alleged proxy betting concerning sports podcaster Bill Simmons and FanDuel, while a hearing into violations of a rule requiring patron notification when their account is limited is also on the agenda.
Simmons admitted on his podcast on the Ringer that he had his daughter’s boyfriend log into his FanDuel account to place wagers while he was in California.
The case involves 22 wagers totaling $21,800 placed over three separate dates in August.
“One of the huge issues that we’ve had, especially with youth and college-age people betting, has to do with proxy betting,” Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) Commissioner Eileen O’Brien said in supporting a commission hearing into the matter.
O’Brien said she was a “little disturbed by the lack of full appreciation of the fact that it is illegal.” She added that it was an opportunity to have an operator do a deeper dive into proxy betting.
Commissioner Paul Brodeur asked senior enforcement counsel Zachary Mercer if was it fair to say that they’re still considering what action to take against Simmons or his daughter’s boyfriend.
“The IEB (Investigations and Enforcement Bureau) has not foreclosed any condition going forward here,” Mercer explained. “So obviously, we will be digging into all facets of this and make determinations as the facts guide us.”
Mercer told the five-member commission that through the IEB’s preliminary review, they understand the facts that have been provided to them. FanDuel voided the affected wagers, acted against Simmons’s account, and reported the incident to the MGC.
Brodeur said it’s not a complicated matter, because Simmons made an admission on his podcast about what he had done.
Restricting player sports betting accounts
Massachusetts became the first state to require sportsbooks to provide personalized detailed explanations within 48 hours when they restrict or limit winning bettors’ accounts. The regulation took effect on June 1.
Soon, Fanatics Betting and Gaming will go before the commission to explain why it failed to make the required notifications to patrons in violation of two regulations. Between July 29 and September 7, Fanatics failed to notify 132 patrons whose wagering it had chosen to limit.
“We are the first folks to do this and it’s a high priority,” Brodeur said. “The initial negotiations, as I understand it about how to manifest this in a way that will be helpful to use, helpful to the consumer, was not without a little resistance.”
The MGC banned generic “business decision” or vague statements, requiring operators to clearly state the specific behavior, pattern, or reason that triggered the limitation. Data released by the MGC indicates that sportsbooks restrict roughly 0.64% of active betting accounts.
“The hopeful person in me, small part of me, likes to think this is a glitch along the way in an effort to make this all work,” Brodeur said. “But the more cynical part of me is certainly concerned that the spirit of what we’re trying to accomplish as a commission with our regulations around limiting might be frustrating.”
Brodeur told his colleagues that he would like some level of assurance it is a glitch, “because if it is not, we need to send a message that that won’t be tolerated.”
Commissioner Nikisha Skinner believed the commission needed the opportunity to dig deeper into what went wrong and understand the mechanics of it all.
