Ohio Casino Control Commission Executive Director Matthew T. Schuler announced Friday that sports betting operators can no longer accept wagers on player-specific prop bets involving intercollegiate competitions.
The decision comes less than three weeks after NCAA Executive Director Charlie Baker sent a letter to the OCCC requesting the ban, citing three reasons for what he called “good cause” to eliminate those types of bets on college players. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine supported Baker’s position, and Schuler agreed, saying “the good cause supports the NCAA’s request … because the NCAA’s request will safeguard the integrity of sports gaming and will be in the best interests of the public.”
The decision to ban player-specific prop bets on college games came despite written objections'to Baker’s letter from eight licensed sportsbook operators in the state. The objections placed were mostly in general to a ban on player-specific prop bets for college games, with operators saying they had the ability to investigate their customers about bullying and harassment concerns and take “appropriate actions required by law.”
Operators also voiced concern about a potential ban driving people who want to make those type of bets toward illegal markets, but Schuler rejected that line of reasoning. He noted these type of wagers made up less than 1.4% of the handle and adjusted gross revenue in Ohio in 2023, and “yet these types of wagers most directly ‘attach an individual student-athlete's name to a bet and therefore increase the likelihood of betting harassment being [directly] targeted toward them.'”