Bill Simmons Speaks Out on Massachusetts Proxy Betting Incident

• Popular sports media figure Bill Simmons recently spoke out on his Massachusetts proxy betting incident
• On the latest episode of his podcast, Simmons said he “did not know” about the proxy rules
• Simmons related a story on a previous podcast in which his daughter’s boyfriend placed several bets using his account in Massachusetts

Bill Simmons addressed Tuesday a proxy betting incident in Massachusetts in his latest podcast, as the popular sports media figure said “did not know about proxy rules” and had learned his lesson regarding the actions.

Simmons, founder of The Ringer, earlier this week discussed an in-depth incident of proxy betting on his podcast in which his daughter’s boyfriend accessed his Massachusetts FanDuel account and placed several bets in his name under his direction. Simmons currently lives in California, where sports betting is illegal.

The widely publicized story – first published by InGame and Front Office Sports – led to an evaluation by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission and action against Simmons by FanDuel.

Lesson Learned

Simmons addressed the issue in his latest podcast episode, noting he was not aware of the proxy betting rules. FanDuel voided the proxy bets and “actioned” his Massachusetts account.

“I talked about how I got my daughter’s boyfriend to place some bets for me in Massachusetts, because I was in LA. Did not know about the proxy rules, yeah. There are some real rules for this stuff. Not only are the bets going to be voided, but I learned my lesson. Apparently proxy betting is not allowed, I actually thought it was, but that’s fine. And now my daughter has to break up with her boyfriend, that was the other thing. I’m kidding, they’re going to stay together, but I did learn. Not allowed to do that. All those bets went out the window. All that special time I had with Hank, out the window as well. The good news is I’m going to be in Boston and maybe at some point I’ll make some more wagers down the road. So, there ya go. Lesson learned,” he said.

Simmons described the incident earlier this week in which he contacted his daughter’s boyfriend to have him access his FanDuel account, which is registered in Massachusetts, to place several futures bets for him while he was in Los Angeles.

“I can’t have my daughter do it. My dad would have no idea how to do it. But I trust Hank. I let Hank log into my FanDuel as me. I get the code to make sure it’s me to my phone and I give him the code. He logs in, and I have all this money that I had from last year, because I actually hit a bunch of futures last year. He’s putting in bets for me and honestly it was the closest I’ve ever felt to Hank. Was a real bonding moment for us. The next week I called him up and we ran it back. We did some more,” Simmons said in the podcast episode.

FanDuel describes in its house rules and terms and conditions that users can only use their accounts for “personal use.” Additionally, Massachusetts sports betting regulations firmly prohibit proxy betting, in which another individual places a wager on someone else’s behalf.

FanDuel addressed the issued with the following comment to Sports Betting Dime.

“We became aware of the issue and handled it consistent with our Terms and Conditions and Massachusetts Gaming Commission regulations, including reporting the matter to the MGC, voiding the bets, and actioning the account,” a FanDuel spokesperson said.

Massachusetts Gaming Commission Yet to Act

A spokesperson for the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) noted in several reports that the MGC is aware of the comments and is looking into the incident.

The MGC is notorious for its strict handling of all sports betting and gaming regulations. The commission has spent hours discussing potentially problematic gambling issues, such as the now-defunct Barstool Sportsbook’s infamous “Can’t Lose Parlay” offering and ESPN College Game Day Host Rece Davis‘s on-air comments about a sports betting pick being “risk-free investing” and not gambling.