#GamblingCompliance Notebook

U.S. College Compliance Directors Deal With Betting Issues

The National Collegiate Athletics Association ( NCAA ) released a study on Wednesday (September 6) of campus compliance directors that found 27 percent of autonomy schools had dealt with a #sportsbetting problem among their staff or athletes within the past year.

A similar percentage of autonomy conference compliance administrators said they were aware of athletes on their campus being harassed online or in person by someone with a gambling interest in their games, according to the survey.?

"Student-athletes are getting harassed by bettors, and billion-dollar ad campaigns are targeting young people across the country. We need all the help we can get, including from regulators and sportsbooks, to protect student-athletes and protect the integrity of the games," NCAA president Charlie Baker said.?

The survey involved more than 500 senior compliance administrators from each Division I, II and III member school.

Overall, the survey found that some form of sports wagering education is occurring for athletes, coaches and athletics administrators at more than 95 percent of Division I schools and a majority of Division II and III schools.?

Among the schools that provide sports wagering education, the primary focus is on NCAA bylaws, sports wagering terminology, state/national laws and rules about providing inside information related to their team.

However, more schools across all three NCAA divisions are also discussing well-being issues, including gambling addiction, than reported doing so in a similar NCAA survey conducted in 2019.

U.S. Industry Report Indicates Increase #ResponsibleGambling Awareness

As legal gaming continues to expand in the U.S., a new survey has found that 84 percent of gamblers within the past year are aware of at least one #responsiblegaming resource.?

When surveying sports bettors within the last year, that number increased to 91 percent, according to a report released Tuesday (September 5) by the American Gaming Association (AGA) to recognise Responsible Gaming Education Month.

The AGA also found that past-year gamblers also report high confidence in the effectiveness of responsible gaming tools, policies and initiatives.

Three-quarters or more of players consider the following measures effective ways to encourage responsible play: deposit limits (85%); time limits (78%); wager limits (77%); employee training (77%); and industry code of conduct (75%).?

The survey also found that more than half (53 percent) of sports bettors report seeing an increase in responsible gaming messaging over the past year.

PAGCOR (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation) To Probe Allegation Of Stolen $1.3m

Philippine gambling regulator PAGCOR said it will probe the details of a criminal accusation that a former online cockfighting operator’s 75m peso ($1.3m) performance bond was stolen by top PAGCOR executives and board members.

The operator’s complaint to the Office of the Ombudsman accuses the current and previous PAGCOR chairmen, former board members and a current employee of “malversation of public funds”, “qualified theft” and document forgery, the regulator said on Wednesday (September 6).?

PAGCOR chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco said the bond's disappearance allegedly occurred in July 2022, a month before he succeeded Andrea Domingo as the chief regulator.

His statement also noted that two of the named respondents on the PAGCOR board were deceased when the incident allegedly occurred.

It is not clear if the ombudsman will proceed with the complaint from former e-sabong (online cockfighting) licensee Kamura Highlands Gaming and Holdings. E-sabong was banned in May 2022 after a brief but lucrative period of regulation.

“While this happened before we came to PAGCOR, the public can rest assured that we will get to the bottom of this, and that we will respond to the accusations against us in the proper venue once we receive a copy of the alleged charges from the Ombudsman,” Tengco said.

The Office of the Ombudsman did not respond to a request for comment.

New UK Shadow Minister For Government Gambling Ministry

The UK’s The Labour Party , which currently leads in the polls ahead of next year’s expected general election, has appointed a new minister to shadow the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS).

Thangam Debbonaire has become shadow culture minister as part of a leadership reshuffle by Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer.

She will shadow Lucy Frazer, whose department is currently consulting on several elements of its #gambling white paper, which is set to rewrite the rules around gambling in Great Britain.