The U.S. sports betting world moves quickly and unpredictably in 2025. In order to properly take stock of it all, we offer InGame’s “EndGame,” an end-of-week compilation of the top storylines, some overlooked items, and all the other news bits from this past week that we found interesting.
DeWine wants to ban Ohio pro props
In reaction to two Cleveland Guardians players being placed under investigation for potential game fixing, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine Thursday called for the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) to ban professional player prop bets. College player prop bets are already banned in the state.
“First, there were threats on Ohio athletes, and now two high-profile Ohio professional athletes have been suspended by Major League Baseball as part of a ‘sports betting investigation,” DeWine said in a statement Thursday. “The harm to athletes and the integrity of the game is clear, and the benefits are not worth the harm. The prop betting experiment in this country has failed badly. I call on the Casino Control Commission to correct this problem and remove all prop bets from the Ohio marketplace.”
In the past, the wagering industry has argued that banning any types of betting markets will send consumers to the illegal market. In addition, the fact that Cleveland pitchers Luiz Ortiz and Emmanuel Clase are both under investigation would be proof that the regulated market is working, according to the industry.
When sports betting first went live in Ohio Jan. 1, 2023, college player props were legal, but in February 2024, in response to a campaign by the NCAA, the state regulator banned them. Multiple states have banned college player props after launch, but no others have banned pro props.
Jill R. Dorson
CMU offering first betting safety course
Carnegie Mellon University is offering a first-of-its-kind college course in sports betting safety and awareness for Spring 2026. The class will be taught by statistician Ron Yurko and neuroscience professor Linda Moya.
Virginia lawmakers in 2022 mandated that high schools offer gambling education classes.
The Supreme Court overturned PASPA in 2018, allowing states to legalize sports betting, and the industry has been growing ever since. Yurko got the idea for the course after starting as a professor at Carnegie Mellon, where he noticed many college students participating in sports betting. The course will have 35 seats, and students have already expressed interest, GoErie reported. According to the course description, 67% of all college students were betting in 2023, and the number has likely risen since.
The course aims to educate students on the risks of sports betting, including the odds stacked against them and how betting platforms make money. The course will also include a neuroscience aspect, which will examine gambling addictions.
DraftKings now offering ‘Early Exit’
DraftKings introduced “Early Exit” late Friday afternoon, which seems to mimic Fanatics’ “Fair Play” feature. In short, if a player goes down with injury in a player prop, DraftKings will refund the bet with cash credits. Full details are here.
Fanatics making move?
While FanDuel and DraftKings have long had a stranglehold on the top two spots by market share for digital sports betting revenue, BetMGM has been a distant, but unchallenged third. But according to a recent analyst note from Citizens, Fanatics Sportsbook is gaining ground. In June, BetMGM’s market share across the U.S. was 6.8% while Fanatics reached an all-time high of 8.6%. For the second quarter, Fanatics beat BetMGM as well, 7.6%-6.2%.
According to the note, Fanatics’ promotional spend is significantly higher than that of the biggest sportsbooks, which could account for some of the penetration. And Citizens’ posited that that spend is helping Fanatics to cut into FanDuel’s and DraftKing’s market share. The question, of course, is what happens when Fanatics backs down on promotional spending?
Jill R. Dorson
Bettors keep Dodgers after trade deadline
A spate of trade activity at the Major League Baseball deadline on Thursday didn’t affect the odds of the overwhelming favorite, but bettors and sportsbooks expressed some new feelings about the teams trying to catch the Los Angeles Dodgers.
At DraftKings, the defending World Series champions remained the favorite throughout the week at +285, with the Phillies and Tigers next at +800. The Mets held position at +850, but confidence in the Yankees surged, apparently, with the scintillating pickups of closers David Bednar, Camilo Doval and several bit players. The Yankees shortened from +1000 to +850 on Friday morning.
Bettors were apparently unimpressed with the Mariners bringing on 36-homer slugger Eugenio Suarez (above) and Josh Naylor, as their odds moved from +1300 to +1400. Seattle’s lineup now features the top two RBI producers (with Cal Raleigh) in MLB, but, what do we know?
The Padres, however, produced some serious interest after a bold trade deadline of talent acquisition, moving from +3000 to +2000.
Brant James
ACC considers sports betting partnerships
The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Athletic Commissioner Jim Phillips hinted at possible sports betting partnerships for the conference, Front Office Sports reported. The ACC is considering new avenues for revenue, and Phillips said the sports betting landscape has “blown up in a way where you see it everywhere now, and it’s really expected.”
Phillips’ comments came after an announcement that the ACC will publish availability reports for athletes prior to games. The ACC would not be the first college athletic organization to partner with a sports betting entity — the NCAA expanded its deal with Genius Sports to include gambling data in April.
However, the ACC remains cautious about the idea. “We’ve looked at it from a little bit of a distance,” Phillips told Front Office Sports.
Ohio Kalshi lawsuit moved to federal court
A lawsuit filed in Ohio against Kalshi, and naming its largest outside market maker as a co-defendant, will now take place before a federal judge instead of in state court.
A group called Ohio Gambling Recovery LLP sued Kalshi and Robinhood — which offers access to Kalshi markets on its platform — alongside financial trading giant Susquehanna International Group in June.
Susquehanna acts as a “market maker” on Kalshi’s platform, providing liquidity to users by offering open bets for traders to take up. This practice, common on both betting and financial exchanges, has been likened to that of a traditional bookmaker.
Similar lawsuits were also filed in Massachusetts and South Carolina at the same time.
Ohio Gambling Recovery’s complaint was based on the Statute of Anne: a 300-year-old law that allows gamblers to recover gambling losses. Ohio’s Statute of Anne applies only to illegal gambling.
Daniel O’Boyle
Wyoming regulator aims to ban harassers
The Wyoming Gaming Commission is the latest to make a move toward banning and penalizing bettors who harass athletes, it wrote in a press release Wednesday.
FanDuel earlier this year added a clause to its house rules that specifically allows it to bar harassers from its platform. In Wyoming, the regulator filed a notice of intent to alter its rules. The WGC approved the changes in November.
The Ohio regulator and West Virginia legislature have similar rules in place in those states, and officials in several other states have discussed similar prohibitions.
The proposed changes included adding definitions for “athletes” and “harass,” and would allow the commission to add a harasser to its involuntary exclusion list. The notice of intent was filed July 16.
Jill R. Dorson
NCPG seeks new executive director
The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) is looking for a new executive director, a position that has been open since Keith Whyte left the organization in January.
The NCPG appointed Nancy Green as interim executive director after Whyte left, but the organization is still searching for a permanent candidate.
The NCPG is looking for a “strategic, innovative, and financially savvy leader” with senior management experience in nonprofit or advocacy work. Application details are on the NCPG’s website.
Here’s what to do — and not — with AI
The International Gaming Standards Association (IGSA) July 17 released a set of nine standards for the use of AI in digital gambling. Suppliers Gaming Laboratories International, International Gaming Technology, and Light & Wonder are among the IGSA’s members.
In it’s “Best Practices” document about AI, the IGSA wrote, “Specifically, there is concern that due to this lack of understanding, regulations may inadvertently allow AI algorithms and/or applications to be used in an unethical manner and that AI use policies will be fragmented leading to
implementation delays and confusion.”
The guidelines, according to the release, are designed for legislators and regulators, but may “benefit” operators, suppliers, and others in the gambling industry.
Among the guidelines:
- Biometric data may not be collected and used to target athletes or consumers
- Players should not use AI to gain an “impermissable advantage”
- Operators using AI to act as a player or opponent “must be designed” to detect if players are getting an unfair advantage
Jill R. Dorson
NBA free agent arrested for fraud
Florida officials arrested Marcus Morris Sr., an NBA free agent, for fraud related to alleged casino debt on Sunday.
Authorities charged Morris with fraud for a check made with insufficient funds over money owed to two Las Vegas casinos. Morris spent 51 hours in the Broward County Main Jail in Florida.
Morris spoke out on Instagram, admitting to the overdue charges but expressing outrage over the ordeal. “So did I go past the time I needed to repay yea probably did, did i know they would locked me up, hellllllllll No … I would pay a thing to stay outta jail. Money paid back and lesson learned.”
Morris’s agent, Yony Noy, and brother, Markieff Morris, also defended the player on X, both claiming the charges were false.
‘Circa Survivor’ returns for second season
“Circa Survivor: The Quest for $14.2 Million” will return for a second season, documenting the 2024 Circa Survivor Pro Football Contest, which the sportsbook calls “the largest sports contest of its kind in the world.”
The 10-episode docuseries will begin airing Aug. 5 at 9 p.m. EST on VSiN.com and YouTubeTV.
Click here for a preview.
Brant James
Prime Sports reaches its third state — KY!
Prime Sports launched in Kentucky Monday, marking the third state for the online sportsbook, according to SBC Americas.
The debut in Kentucky follows the approval by the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation’s board of directors in 2024. Prime Sports’ first U.S. state was Ohio in 2023, and they later added New Jersey, where the company is now based.
The debut from Prime Sports comes only about a week after Circa Sports opened a retail sportsbook in Franklin, Kentucky. Prime Sports joins bet365, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, ESPN Bet, Fanatics, and FanDuel as available digital platforms in Kentucky.
ICYMI on InGame
BetRivers Third Illinois Sportsbook To Add Bet Minimum
DraftKings’ $450K Fine In Massachusetts Spotlights Protocol Problems
Robinhood Made $10M From Q2 Event Contracts, Delivered Most Of Kalshi’s Volume
Kalshi’s Sara Slane Joins ‘Next Evolution’
Quintenz Emails ‘Making The Rounds On The Hill’ Amid Conflict-Of-Interest Questions
A Third Bill To Roll Back 90% Gambling-Loss Writeoff Cap Filed In Congress
Gambling Recovery Lawsuit All But Dead In DC After Council Vote
The NFL Hall Of Fame Game Can Be A Bettor’s Paradise
The Better You Bet, The Sooner You’re Gone: UK Confirms What US Bettors Already Know
