Washington lawmakers have advanced legislation that could expand sports betting in the state to include wagers on in-state college teams. Both chambers of the legislature have approved Senate Bill 6137, also called the Sports Wagering Integrity Act. This would allow bets on programs like the University of Washington, Washington State, and Gonzaga at tribal casinos. If the Senate agrees to a House amendment, the bill will move to Gov. Bob Ferguson for final approval.
Allowing wagers on in-state college teams could help bring more betting activity into Washington’s regulated market. Most fans enjoy betting on their local team, especially in marquee tournaments like March Madness.
Currently, fans can place wagers on college games as long as they don’t involve local programs, but the issue here is that it could push interest toward unregulated or offshore platforms that are unregulated, which puts consumers at risk.
By allowing wagers on teams like the University of Washington, Washington State, and Gonzaga at licensed tribal casinos, the change would keep more betting activity within the state’s legal system. That’s beneficial for all parties involved, since consumers can engage in more secure betting activity, while the state can obtain more tax revenue.
While the legislation would expand betting options to include in-state college teams, it would still prohibit wagers tied to individual college athletes. The bill maintains the existing ban on college player prop markets, meaning bettors would not be able to place wagers based on stats such as points scored, rebounds, and more.
Lawmakers and regulators have increasingly moved to restrict these types of wagers in college sports due to integrity concerns and the potential impact on student-athletes.
Integrity concerns arise from recent cases of players manipulating results. Since player props can be easily manipulated without truly affecting the final result of the game, they’re banned in Washington in an attempt to preserve game integrity.
Another one of the primary issues cited by policymakers is harassment directed at athletes by bettors, particularly through social media after games. By keeping the ban on player props in place, the legislation aims to reduce pressure on individual college athletes while still allowing broader wagers on team outcomes.
Even though allowing users to wager on in-state teams can limit the risk of pushing them offshore, there’s still the chance that they do so to find player props.
Since player props have become a popular betting market, users may look to unregulated sites to fulfill this need.
This is the downside to banning college props. While it can help preserve game integrity and protect athletes from verbal harassment, it could also put bettors at risk by inadvertently giving them an incentive to join offshore platforms.
