Massachusetts Levies Bevy of Fines to Sports Betting Operators

• The Massachusetts Gaming Commission approved eight civil administrative penalties to sports betting operators
• FanDuel, DraftKings, Fanatics Betting and Gaming, Caesars Sportsbook, and BetMGM faced fined for noncompliance issues
• Fines ranged from $5,000 to $20,000

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission levied eight civil administrative penalties for noncompliance to five licensed Massachusetts sports betting operators this week.

The gaming commission this week had a glut of sports betting noncompliance issues to evaluate, which ranged from improperly accepted collegiate prop bets to allowing wagers to be placed on Russian athletes.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission doled out two fines each to DraftKings, BetMGM, and Fanatics Betting and Gaming, while issuing one each to both Caesars Sportsbook and FanDuel.

Unusual Amount of Fines to Deal With

Caitlin Monahan, Director of Investigations and Enforcement Bureau for the commission, acknowledged the abnormal amount of noncompliance issues the commission had to deal with during its meeting. Monahan reported that these specific noncompliance issues were held until the commission made a determination on a several separate BetMGM noncompliance issues that were finalized this past December.

“As you remember, the commission recently rendered a decision related to a number of incidents of noncompliance by BetMGM. The commission asked the IEB to hold its recommendations on a number of other matters until that BetMGM decision was issued so the IEB could take that decision into consideration in reaching its recommendations. Now that the decision is issued, we have finalized the eight recommendations you’ll hear about today. It’s important to reemphasize that in making these recommendations the IEB has done its best to follow the guidance of the commission as expressed in its previous decisions,” she said.

When making its recommendations for civil administrative penalties, the IEB takes into account several factors, she noted. These include whether a noncompliance issue is statutory or regulatory, the number of bets, the total handle, if an issue was self-reported or identified, how much time passed since the operator’s previous issue, if remedial actions were taken by an operator, and if the operator is forthcoming in the investigation process.

Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairman Jordan Maynard said the state has the “best dispute resolution, period,” which is why the regulated markets are the safest in the country to bet with. He then took what seemed to be a veiled shot at the popularity of prediction markets.

“If you’re in the illegal market, or the pseudo-regulated market, you see in the news right now there’s a lot of problems with dispute resolution. If you’re in the legal market, we can make sure patrons are made whole,” he said.

Fines Up to $20,000

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission voted unanimously in approval for all eight fines. Commissioner Eileen O’Brien voted in favor for all eight, but said she believed higher amounts would have been appropriate in many cases.

The civil administrative penalty details are as follows:

• FanDuel: $5,000 civil administrative penalty for improper allowance of prop bets on a Nebraska quarterback. Accepted prop bets on the quarterback from Sept. 7, 2023, to Sept. 9, 2023.
• BetMGM: $6,500 civil administrative penalty for allowing a $10 prop bet on a UNLV wide receiver’s over/under total for receiving yards during an October 2024 matchup against the University of Oregon.
• DraftKings: $6,500 civil administrative penalty for accepting 13 improper bets for $457 total on a University of Michigan running back from Jan. 5, 2024, to Jan. 6, 2024.
• Fanatics Betting and Gaming: $7,500 civil administrative penalty for 36 bets between Jan. 22, 2025, through March 21, 2025, on the 2025 Heisman College Football winner for a total handle of $545.
• Caesars Sportsbook: $10,000 civil administrative penalty for accepting six bets totaling $8,270 from June 12, 2024, to July 15, 2024. The sportsbook accepted improper bets on the total amount of red cards awarded during the UEFA Euro Tournament.
• DraftKings: $10,000 civil administrative penalty for accepted impermissible player prop bets during an Arizona vs. Oregon NCAA basketball matchup. The market was live for two hours on March 23, 2025, in which DraftKings accepted 89 bets for a total handle of $1,600.
• BetMGM: $15,000 civil administrative penalty for two noncompliance issues from Nov. 17, 2024, through Nov. 18, 2024, and again from July 5, 2024, through March 7, 2025. Both incidents involved impermissible bets accepted on Russian UFC fighter Petr Yan.
• Fanatics Betting and Gaming: $20,000 civil administrative penalty for a noncompliance incident taking play from July 4, 2025, through July 24, 2025. Accepted 154 bets on Russian UFC fighter Petr Yan.