The NCAA is one of the biggest corporations not only in the United States, but in the entire world.
One of the biggest talking points over the last couple of seasons has been on sports gambling. Many NCAA athletes have been punished for gambling on sports, as it has been illegal for college athletics to do so. This might change.
On Wednesday, the Division I Administrative Committee released a proposal to allow college athletes to wager on professional sports. This would be a total game-changer for the NCAA and, quite honestly, potentially a very risky move.
“The Division I Administrative Committee on Wednesday adopted a proposal that would permit student-athletes and athletics department staff members to bet on professional sports. The rule change must be approved by all three NCAA divisions. Divisions II and III are expected to consider the proposal during their respective meetings at the end of October. If approved by all three divisions, the rule change will be effective Nov. 1.”
If an athlete is gambling on sports, that takes away the integrity of the game. Sports can't afford to have integrity damaged because the NCAA is willing to allow athletes (who are already being paid with NIL) to gamble and risk making or losing money. There are too many questions that would need to be answered if this proposal were to go through.
Here is what the Illinois Athletic Director and Chair of the Committee, John Whitman, said as part of the proposal.
“The Administrative Committee was clear in its discussion today that it remains concerned about the risks associated with all forms of sports gambling but ultimately voted to reduce restrictions on student-athletes in this area to better align with their campus peers. This change allows the NCAA, the conferences, and the member schools to focus on protecting the integrity of college games while, at the same time, encouraging healthy habits for student-athletes who choose to engage in betting activities on professional sports.”
