The NCAA has assembled a group of subject-matter experts from its national office in Indianapolis to examine the potential impact of legalized gambling on college sports with the goal of protecting game integrity, monitoring betting activity, managing sports data and expanding educational efforts.
NCAA instead has decided to focus its attention less on the concept of "integrity fees" that might provide member schools with additional revenue from legalized gambling and more on the substance of education, the protection of student-athletes and a standard approach to game integrity through consistent national guidelines, according to a report at NCAA.org. The association will focus on such subjects as officiating, NCAA rules, federal and state legislation, and the use of integrity services.
“With this new landscape, we must evolve and expand our long-standing efforts to protect both the integrity of competitions and the well-being of student-athletes," said NCAA chief legal officer Donald Remy. Added Joni Comstock, the association's senior vice president of championships and alliances, "Legalized sports gambling across the country is rather new, but the NCAA and its members have committed significant resources over the years to policy, research and education around sports wagering. With student-athlete well-being as the centerpiece, we will continue to build upon these efforts to assist members as they adapt to legalized sports wagering in their states and regions.”
The association has already taken some action, suspending its policy of denying states in which sports gambling is legal the opportunity to host NCAA championship events. Unlikely to change is the NCAA rule prohibiting sports wagering by student-athletes or member schools’ athletics employees, including coaches.
