Massachusetts sportsbooks opened their doors on January 31st and within 10 days two of the three legal sports betting operators had already admitted to violating regulatory requirements. In the state of Massachusetts, wagering on college sports involving local universities is strictly prohibited, with the exception of tournaments with four or more teams.
The WynnBet Sportsbook at Encore Boston Harbor and Barstool Sportsbook at Plainridge Park both revealed their infractions to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC). Chairperson of the MGC, Cathy Judd-Stein, praised the operators for self-reporting and mentioned that the commission will review how other states have penalized similar offenses.
The violations occurred when Barstool accepted bets on a men’s college basketball match involving Merrimack College, whilst WynnBet took wagers on a women’s basketball game between Boston College and another school. The MGC are still investigating the amount of money bet in these games.
When the commission convene on February 14th they will likely discuss the sanctions that should be placed on the two operators. For example, in New Jersey BetMGM were recently fined $25,000 for taking bets on college games associated with local universities, whilst in Pennsylvania BetMGM were ordered to
