NBA Gambling Scandals Push For More Sports Betting Overseeing

After a series of FBI arrests tied to an illegal gambling scheme involving NBA figures, lawmakers in both parties are renewing calls for sweeping federal oversight of sports betting — including bans on certain wagers, stricter advertising rules, and an intensified crackdown on offshore operators.

The developments mark the most serious congressional attention to sports betting since the 2018 repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), which allowed states to legalize and regulate wagering. Despite numerous proposals over the past six years, Congress has yet to pass any comprehensive reform.

House Committee Presses NBA for Answers

Following the arrests, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce requested a briefing from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. The committee asked for details on the investigation and whether the league plans to revise its Code of Conduct or its partnerships with betting companies.

“These allegations raise serious concerns about sports betting and the integrity of the sport in the NBA, which harms fans and legal sports bettors,” the committee’s letter stated. Lawmakers emphasized their jurisdiction over interstate commerce and consumer protection, drawing parallels to past congressional probes into doping and abuse scandals in professional and Olympic sports.

In a separate letter, Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) asked the NBA to provide documentation on any internal investigations into illegal gambling by players or coaches since 2020. The senators set a November 10 deadline and warned that the latest allegations could erode public trust. “The integrity of NBA games must be trustworthy and free from the influence of organized crime or gambling-related activity,” they wrote. “Sports betting scandals like this one may lead the American public to assume that all sports are corrupt.”

Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he supports a nationwide ban on proposition bets, or “prop bets,” which allow wagers on specific in-game outcomes such as player statistics. Durbin argued such bets pose a direct threat to sports integrity. “The temptation for athletes, seasoned coaches, and professional officials to adjust performances is real,” Durbin said. “Sadly, scandals are becoming more and more frequent.”

The NCAA, led by President Charlie Baker, has been pressing states to prohibit college player prop bets, a move several regulators in Ohio, Louisiana, and Maryland have already adopted. While collegiate prop bans are gaining momentum, expanding the restriction to professional sports remains unlikely. Representative Michael Baumgartner, who introduced a collegiate prop bet ban earlier this year, said extending it to professional leagues would be “unlikely” to pass Congress.

Critics of such bans argue that outlawing prop bets could drive bettors toward unregulated offshore markets.

A bipartisan group of 11 senators, led by Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Katie Britt (R-Ala.), urged the Department of Justice to step up enforcement against illegal offshore gambling sites. Their letter cited the rising use of such platforms by minors and referenced earlier appeals from all 50 state attorneys general for federal intervention.

“Access to offshore sites is one of the main culprits behind the rise in sports gambling among minors,” Britt’s office said in a statement. The group’s letter follows years of state-level enforcement efforts, including hundreds of cease-and-desist orders issued to illegal operators. Lawmakers are asking Attorney General Pam Bondi to deploy the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act to block offshore websites from serving U.S. users.

The latest scandal has revived attention to the Supporting Affordability and Fairness with Every Bet Act (SAFE Bet Act), a dormant proposal from Blumenthal and Representative Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.). The bill would establish nationwide advertising limits, affordability checks for bettors, a ban on collegiate prop bets, and restrictions on the use of AI to target gamblers. Tonko called the NBA scandal “a symptom of the unchecked explosion of legalized sports betting,” arguing that “unfettered access to gambling destroys public trust in the game.”

Blumenthal said the SAFE Bet Act would “ensure that there is finally vigorous oversight of gambling companies” and prevent insiders from betting on their own games. “Letting gambling companies turn sports into the wild west has been an abysmal and absolute failure,” he said.

The integrity of NBA games must be trustworthy and free from the influence of organized crime or gambling-related activity. Sports betting scandals like this one may lead the American public to assume that all sports are corrupt.

Limited Progress, Growing Pressure

While multiple committees and lawmakers are now demanding information and promising reform, federal action remains uncertain. A Senate Judiciary hearing on sports betting last December quickly lost focus and has not reconvened.

Yet, the FBI arrests — coupled with growing concern over gambling’s reach into professional sports — may force Congress to act where it previously hesitated. As one Senate aide put it, “The line between entertainment and exploitation is getting thinner. At some point, Washington will have to draw it.”