NCAA rescinds rule change, reinstates athlete betting ban

Field Level Media|published: Fri 21st November, 23:52 2025

Mar 3, 2018; Chicago, IL, USA; A general stock view of a referee holding a basketball during a game between the DePaul Blue Demons and the Xavier Musketeers at the Wintrust Arena. The Musketeers won 65-62. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

The NCAA has reinstated a ban on pro sports betting, the organization announced Friday.

The initial rule change would've allowed student-athletes and athletics department staff members to bet on professional sports. College sports betting would've still been outlawed.

The new betting stance would've taken effect Nov. 1. However, a procedural 30-day period was triggered after less than 75% of Division I members voted in favor of the measure.

A two-thirds majority was needed to rescind the rule before the procedural period ended Saturday. That threshold was reached Friday.

The vote also applies to Division II and III programs, meaning pro sports betting is still banned at all three levels.

The NCAA's initial decision to lax its betting restrictions came amid a myriad of gambling-related scandals across the sports world.

In the pros, MLB players Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, as well as NBA figures Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and Damon Jones, have all been accused of participating in betting schemes in the past month. Collegiately, the NCAA revoked the eligibility of six men's basketball players over sports betting allegations two weeks ago. On Friday, it accused ex-Temple guard Hysier Miller of betting on Owls games dozens of times, with some wagers coming against his own team.

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey was part of a wave of voices that came out against the NCAA's push to allow betting after the organization codified a rule barring sports gambling in 2023.

"If there are legal or practical concerns about the prior policy, those should be addressed through careful refinement -- not through wholesale removal of the guardrails that have long supported the integrity of games and the well-being of those who participate," Sankey said in an open letter late last month.

--Field Level Media