One of the unanticipated results of regulated sports betting in the United States has been a flurry of threats by aggrieved prop bettors aimed at student athletes. Across the country, college athletes have been subjected to harassment and threats when they haven’t lived up to the bookmakers’ expectations. Lawmakers across the country have been addressing this problem by banning college-level player props and now the State of New Jersey is poised to join that group.
Late last week, the New Jersey Assembly Tourism, Gaming and the Arts Committee advanced Assembly Bill A4905, which explicitly bans licensed bookmakers from offering college-level player props.
The bill’s sponsor, Assemblyman Sterley Stanley, commented on its significance in a recent press release saying, “As one of the first states to legalize sports gambling, I believe that it is our responsibility to ensure that we set the best example we possibly can for all others who wish to follow our lead. Even as a staunch supporter of the sports betting industry, I believe it is incumbent upon us to recognize the incredible pressures that college athletes face between their academic and athletic responsibilities. My legislation ensures that they do not have those pressures compounded by problem gamblers that have come to harass our college athletes when gamblers lose money on college player proposition bets.”
New Jersey is one of just six US States that still allow college-level player props and it’s likely that the remaining five will ban them in the near future. Interestingly, New Jersey is the only state that bans wagers on college-level events that are physically played in the state.