Massachusetts Gaming Commission Fines Fanatics Over Illegal Bets

Accepting bets on a Boston College football game proved expensive for Fanatics Sportsbook. However, not as costly as it should have been in the mind of one Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) member.

Following an MGC hearing, the conclusion was that Fanatics Sportsbook be issued a $20,000 fine for taking the unlawful bets. According to the commission’s report on the matter, the state’s Investigations and Enforcements Bureau (IFB) determined that Fanatics took 83 bets, both straight bets and parlays, on a September 21, 2024, college football game between Boston College and Michigan State. The bets totaled $3,325.88.

Under Massachusetts law, bets cannot be placed on an in-state college sports team unless that team is participating in a national event such as the College Football Playoff or NCAA Basketball tournament. In this instance, the bets were accepted on an NCAA regular-season game.

The same Fanatics employee took all of the bets after inadvertently shutting off the betting restriction imposed on the game. All losing wagers were later voided, and the stake was refunded to the bettor’s account. Winning wagers were all paid in full.

Fanatics self-reported the violations.

One MGC member was displeased by the ruling

The committee voted 4-1 in favor of the $20,000 fine issued to Fanatics. Commissioner Eileen O’Brien cast the lone dissenting vote. She was quite outspoken regarding her reasons for that dissent. O’Brien noted that this was the third offense of this nature committed by Fanatics Sportsbook. The company was fined $10,000 in May 2024 and $15,000 in July 2024 for two similar violations.

“As a general matter, I’m not satisfied with the fine,” O’Brien said during the hearing. “I think only going up $5,000 each time they do this is not much of a deterrent on the operator.

“I’m a little disappointed, quite frankly, with the fine. I think it should be more severe. For the third offense on this, I would have gone harsher.”

Although she voted in favor of the fine, Commissioner Nakisha Skinner also expressed her concern that the repeated violations indicate that the message is not getting through to Fanatics.

“I don’t see anything in the remedial measures that address how the operator will eliminate the ability of a single individual to make determinations that are incorrect or not aligned with what is permissible in Massachusetts,” Skinner said.

Illegal bets are an ongoing issue in Massachusetts

In September of this year, the MGC reported that $11.8 million in illegal bets had been accepted by sportsbooks on the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League by sportsbooks including Fanatics, FanDuel, DraftKings, and Caesars. That league is not sanctioned for betting in Massachusetts.

In July of this year, DraftKings was fined $450,000 by the MGC for accepting wagers via credit cards. It is prohibited in Massachusetts to fund any sports betting with a credit card.

In total, 218 DraftKings customers made 1,160 illegal wagers on sports with their credit cards. DraftKings self-reported this violation, insisting it was a misunderstanding of the law.

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