The gambling policies of the NCAA and major professional sports leagues differ. To get an idea of what's allowed, we break it down by sport to see how they're navigating the evolving American betting scene.

MLB

  • Is sports gambling allowed? Yes, on anything not related to baseball. That means betting on amateur games and fantasy baseball are off-limits. Otherwise, players are allowed to gamble in “jurisdictions in which such bets are legal.”
  • Who does this apply to? All in-uniform personnel, as well as team and league employees. This includes both full-time and seasonal workers.
  • Where is sports gambling allowed? There are no restrictions to where gambling is allowed, provided it’s not with illegal bookmakers or illegal offshore betting websites.
  • Does this include any wager? Yes.
  • Does this include Super Bowl squares, NCAA tournament brackets or fantasy sports? Super Bowl squares or NCAA brackets are fair game — but anything related to baseball is illegal. That would include betting on home run derbies, playoff odds, college baseball, in-game betting and fantasy baseball, for example.
  • Are athletes required to sign a statement acknowledging gambling rules? No. The rules governing gambling are spelled out in the collective bargaining agreement between the players and the league, which was signed in 2022.
  • What are the punishments? Punishments depend on the severity and can carry suspensions up to and including permanent ineligibility from MLB or Minor League Baseball. The timelines set in Major League Rule 21 are as such: “For bets placed with illegal bookmakers, the punishment is up to the Commissioner’s discretion. Any bet on a baseball game that does not involve the player will receive a one-year ineligibility ruling; if a player bets on games he can affect, it is a lifetime ban.”
  • There are other examples, though. Tanking a game or asking someone else to lose on purpose also will lead to a permanent expulsion. A three-year ban will be enforced if personnel offer or receive a gift for defeating an opponent. Offering a gift to an umpire leads to permanent ineligibility.
  • How is it catching offenders? The league collaborates with regulators, sportsbooks and independent integrity monitors to enforce the policies and monitor betting activity. MLB conducts in-house investigations of any alleged rule violation.
  • Despite hosting two of sports’ most famous gambling controversies — the 1919 “Black Sox” scandal and Pete Rose’s lifetime ban — baseball hasn’t had a rampant problem in recent decades. The last player to be suspended was minor leaguer Pete Bayer in 2021; he is on the ineligible list for betting on MLB games in Colorado in 2020 after the MLB season was canceled. In Bayer’s case, his bets were flagged by the Colorado division of gaming because his MLB employment made him a prohibited bettor.