Missouri Denies NCAA Request to Prohibit Player Prop Bets

• The Missouri Gaming Commission unanimously denied an NCAA request to prohibit certain bets
• The NCAA has requested states consider prohibited player prop bet and first-half unders
• Commission received several comments from licensed operators in favor of denying the request

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It is too early in Missouri’s sports betting journey to honor a request from the NCAA to prohibit certain bets, the Missouri Gaming Commission decided this afternoon.

The Missouri Gaming Commission (MGC) unanimously voted to deny a recent request from NCAA President Charlie Baker to prohibit player prop bets and first-half unders in the wake of a college basketball sports betting scandal.

“It’s important for us to be as educated about this as we possibly can. I don’t feel like I am there,” Missouri Gaming Commission Chairman Jan M. Zimmerman said prior to the vote.

Unanimous Decision to Deny

The MGC voted 3-0 to deny the request from Baker and the NCAA.

The NCAA sent the request to gaming commissions throughout the country after news broke that 20 individuals were indicted for their alleged roles in fixing NCAA basketball games and Chinese Basketball Association games.

“Following the federal indictments today involving basketball integrity issues, the NCAA reiterates our deep concerns about the dangers collegiate sports betting poses to the health, safety and well-being of over 550,000 student-athletes and to the integrity of NCAA competitions. To better protect student-athletes, game officials and competitions, state laws and regulations must be amended to remove the types of bets we know are being manipulated,” Baker wrote.

Commissioner David Hane said it is too early to make these changes to the state’s sports betting catalogue without proper data to determine how it may impact handle and tax revenue totals.

“Kansas has this. People can make their bets there. They can circumvent us and still make the bets, correct? We’re early in the game, we have no idea to the extent of how much it could effect this,” he said.

The MGC requested comments for the proposal on Jan. 16. According to MGC Deputy Director Kevin Bond, the commission received comments from the Sports Betting Alliance, Caesars Sportsbook, Circa Sportsbook, and one private citizen on the issue.

All comments were against the request to prohibit the bet types.

Both Caesars Sportsbook and Circa Sportsbook reported the prohibition would only push Missouri customers to place bets in the illegal, unregulated sports betting markets. Licensed operators, they noted, are the first line of defense against event manipulation.

Despite the decision to deny Baker’s request, Zimmerman noted the MGC will continue to have discussions on the issue and will evaluate the request again when it takes in more information.

NCAA Renewing Prohibition Efforts

Baker and the NCAA started their push to ban player props on individual college athletes in 2024 as a way to protect student-athletes from harassment stemming from bettors wagering on collegiate prop bets.

Ohio, Maryland, Louisiana, and Vermont moved to eliminate player prop bets after Baker’s 2024 request.

The following states have some kind of NCAA player prop prohibition in place:

• Arizona
• Colorado
• Connecticut (no props for in-state schools)
• Illinois (no props for in-state schools)
• Indiana (pre-game props only)
• Iowa (no props for in-state schools)
• Louisiana
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Missouri (no props for in-state schools)
• New Jersey (no props for in-state schools)
• Ohio
• Oregon
• New Hampshire (no props for in-state schools)
• New York
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island (no props for in-state schools)
• Tennessee
• Vermont
• Virginia
• West Virginia