NBA, WNBA urge gambling regulators to act on betting-related harassment
The NBA and WNBA, alongside their players’ and referees’ unions, have called on gambling regulators to take stronger action against betting-related harassment.
The group has renewed the call for action in a follow-up letter, following a joint appeal from the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and MLS earlier this month.
While the initial statement focused more on the negative consequences associated with the rise of sports betting for athletes and their families, the latest letter, obtained by The Athletic, focuses specifically on the targeted harassment faced by players from angry bettors.
The letter said the members of the organizations were facing a “marked increase in betting-related harassment and threats”, ranging from abuse in arenas and on the street to threats online and on social media. It added that behavior can also extend to players’ family members.
It continued, “All of it is unacceptable, and all stakeholders should do their part to discourage this kind of misconduct and to punish it where they are able.”
Both letters call for three restrictions on bettors who threaten or harass sports participants, including permanent bans; clearer channels for reporting abusive conduct; and proactive identification and exclusions of accounts associated with this behavior.
It also brings the WNBA and Women’s National Basketball Players’ Association (WNBPA) into the initiative after they were absent from the previous joint statement, which was sent on 15 September.
The WNBPA subsequently criticized the omission, accusing the NBA of deciding “that WNBA players did not warrant inclusion in a joint position statement.”
According to ESPN, five US states (Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, West Virginia, and Wyoming) already have measures allowing similar restrictions on bettors who engage in betting-related harassment.
Charlotte Capewell brings her passion for storytelling and expertise in writing, researching, and the gambling industry to every article she writes. Her specialties include the US gambling industry, regulator legislation, igaming, and more.
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The Backstory
Leagues push regulators beyond voluntary safeguards
The NBA and WNBA’s latest appeal to gambling regulators reflects a broader effort by sports organizations to turn betting-related harassment from a workplace problem into a compliance issue. The leagues, their players’ associations and referees’ unions are asking regulators to give sharper consequences to bettors who threaten or abuse athletes, coaches, officials and their families. The requested measures include permanent bans, better reporting channels and proactive identification of accounts tied to misconduct.
The timing matters. Legal sports betting has moved from a peripheral revenue stream to a central part of the media and fan experience in the U.S. That expansion has increased the volume of wagers on individual performances, game outcomes and in-play markets, while giving frustrated bettors direct access to athletes through social media, payment apps and public appearances. The leagues’ message is that market growth has outpaced the systems designed to protect participants.
The WNBA’s inclusion also gives the effort a different profile. The league’s players’ association had criticized being left out of an earlier joint statement from major men’s leagues, saying WNBA players faced the same risks and deserved the same protection. Their addition underscores that harassment is not confined to the largest betting markets or the most established sports. It is tied to the expanding menu of wagerable events and the visibility of athletes across platforms.
College sports offered an early warning
The NCAA has been one of the clearest examples of how betting pressure can reach athletes directly. A recent NCAA partnership with Venmo to address athlete harassment targeted unwanted payment requests from losing bettors and attempts to solicit inside information from college players. The agreement included a reporting hotline, education on account security and monitoring of social media trends during high-profile games.
The Venmo partnership showed how harassment has evolved beyond angry posts after a bad beat. Some bettors have used payment platforms to demand reimbursement from athletes after losing wagers. Others have sought injury or playing-time information, raising integrity concerns in addition to athlete welfare issues. NCAA officials have said nearly 20% of online abuse directed at basketball and football players is tied to sports betting, a figure that helps explain why leagues now want more formal enforcement tools.
The NCAA also has tried to change bettor behavior through education. A January NCAA study found education showed promise in changing sports betting behaviors but also said harassment from bettors remained prevalent in Division I. That finding points to the limits of awareness campaigns. Education may reduce harmful conduct among some fans, but the leagues are now seeking penalties that follow bettors across regulated platforms.
Operators begin writing consequences into account rules
Sportsbooks have started to respond by making anti-harassment policies more explicit. BetMGM revised its user terms to allow account suspensions when customers are found to have used harassing or abusive language toward athletes, coaches, teams or league personnel. The company said the update gave clearer notice to users and aligned with its sports integrity and responsible gambling commitments.
That move is significant because operators are positioned to impose practical consequences. Leagues can condemn abuse, teams can increase security and social media platforms can remove posts, but sportsbooks can restrict the commercial activity at the center of the misconduct. If regulators require or encourage operators to share information, investigate complaints and exclude verified offenders, harassment policies could become part of licensing oversight rather than brand-level discretion.
Still, the approach raises operational questions. Sportsbooks would need standards for verifying abuse, handling appeals and distinguishing protected speech from threats or targeted harassment. Regulators would have to decide whether exclusions should apply across one operator, all licensed books in a state or multiple jurisdictions. The leagues’ call for clearer reporting channels suggests they want a more consistent framework than the current patchwork, where only some states have rules allowing action against abusive bettors.
Betting is becoming part of the broadcast
The push for stronger protections is unfolding as betting content becomes more deeply integrated into sports viewing. FanDuel’s partnership with Amazon for NBA and WNBA coverage will put odds, bet tracking and betting content into Prime Video broadcasts. The arrangement illustrates how wagering is no longer confined to sportsbook apps or pregame shows. It is increasingly part of the live viewing product.
That integration creates commercial upside for leagues, media companies and operators. It can increase engagement, support advertising inventory and connect betting brands with audiences during games. But it also intensifies the relationship between individual performances and consumer outcomes. When viewers are invited to track wagers in real time, missed shots, turnovers, fouls and officiating decisions can carry immediate financial meaning for bettors.
This is where the leagues’ current appeal becomes a risk-management strategy. If betting is embedded in broadcasts and promoted as part of fandom, leagues need credible safeguards for the people on the court. Otherwise, the same tools that deepen engagement may contribute to a hostile environment for athletes and officials. Regulators are being asked to help draw that boundary before harassment becomes accepted as an unavoidable byproduct of legal betting.
Women’s sports growth brings opportunity and exposure
The WNBA’s presence in the letter also reflects the changing economics of women’s sports betting. At SBC Summit Americas, panelists said the market for women’s sports wagering is underdeveloped despite clear fan interest. A discussion on women and sports betting highlighted WNBA data showing that in states where betting is legal, 37% of female fans and 40% of male fans bet on WNBA games.
That data undermines the assumption that women’s sports are not attractive betting products. It also explains why sportsbooks, data providers and media companies are likely to offer more markets on WNBA games and other women’s competitions. More betting options can bring visibility and revenue, but they can also expose players to the same forms of abuse long reported in men’s leagues, including threats tied to point spreads, player props and in-game wagers.
The dynamic is especially sensitive because women athletes already face disproportionate online abuse unrelated to betting. Adding financial grievance to that environment can make harassment more targeted and persistent. The WNBPA’s objection to being omitted from the earlier league statement was therefore more than a procedural complaint. It was a demand that women athletes be included in the policy architecture being built around betting, integrity and safety.
A wider debate over what regulators should police
The leagues’ appeal comes as regulators across North America are reassessing the boundaries of sports wagering and event-based markets. In Canada, securities and investment regulators recently rejected the idea that sports prediction markets should be treated as securities or derivatives. The Canadian regulators’ joint letter on sports prediction markets said sports and entertainment event contracts do not belong under securities and derivatives rules, leaving them outside that framework.
Although that Canadian action addressed a different product category, it reflects the same underlying issue: Sports outcomes are increasingly being packaged as tradable, wagerable or predictive events across multiple channels. Regulators must decide which agencies oversee those markets, what consumer protections apply and how integrity risks are managed. The NBA and WNBA are now pressing gambling regulators to make participant safety part of that equation.
The stakes are practical as well as reputational. If athletes and officials believe legal betting has made their jobs more dangerous, leagues could face labor pressure, security costs and integrity vulnerabilities. If regulators move too slowly, operators may apply inconsistent standards that frustrate enforcement. The latest letter is an attempt to create a common expectation: Betting access is a privilege that can be revoked when customers use it as a basis to threaten the people who make the games possible.
