If you’re a professional sports gambler, oddsmaker or someone who works with gambling-related activities, there are rules about official betting that you should follow. Any infraction of the rules can result in indefinite suspension or even a lifetime ban from the game you love.
The NBA prohibits anyone affiliated with its 30 teams or the league as a whole from placing bets on any event in which they’re involved. This includes any player, coach, team or league employee. It also excludes anyone associated with the NBA’s summer league, G-League, Basketball Africa League or NBA2K League. However, presuming that sports betting is legal where you’re located, bets on non-NBA events are permitted.
A player or someone affiliated with a MLB team can’t place bets on any game in which they’re participating as an official, whether it’s a regular season, postseason or Olympic competition. The same goes for a player or person working with a WBSC-sanctioned multisport competition.
The rules against illegal gambling in baseball are well-established and publicized. For example, Rule 21 posted on dugout walls reveals that any player, umpire or club or league employee who “bettes any sum whatsoever on any game in connection with which the bettor has a duty to perform” will be declared permanently ineligible from the game.
The NBA screens in-uniform officials to ensure they have no history of gambling or sports wagering, and a background check may flag a problem. For instance, if an official has criminal charges or convictions related to forgery, uttering or embezzlement, it may be a red flag for the league. The NBA also collaborates with regulators and sportsbooks to enforce its policy.
