Summary:
- Plainridge Park, MGM Springfield, and Encore Boston Harbor were fined.
- Fines ranged from $10,000 to $20,000.
- Events featuring MA colleges are banned from betting unless four or more teams are involved.
Three casinos in Massachusetts are in a bit of hot water after accepting sports bets during college events featuring teams from the state. Operators are not allowed to offer betting odds on Massachusetts college teams unless there are four or more teams involved in an event, such as a tournament.
This week, the regulator announced that Plainridge Park, MGM Springfield and Encore Boston Harbor must pay up for their violations.
Details of the Fines
The smallest fine went to Encore Boston Harbor, a casino located in Everett. The casino must pay $10,000 for allowing wagering in early February on an event featuring the Boston College women’s basketball team.
Plainridge Park must pay $20,000 for allowing wagers on a basketball game involving Long Island University and Merrimack College. MGM Springfield must also pay $20,000 for offering bets on Harvard men’s basketball games.
Each of the violations took place in early February. The Commission ruled that the incidents were a serious violation of regulations based on the state’s Sports Wagering Catalog. The fines are a consequence of the violation and will hopefully deter such an incident from happening again.
The Commission determined the fine amounts based on the betting incidents. At Plainridge Park, the casino allowed 33 wagers to slip through the cracks, adding up to over $6,800 in bets. Betting was allowed for seven hours before it was shut down.
For MGM, the casino allowed betting on two Harvard games and the total reached just over $1,200. The Encore fine was much smaller because it involved only one incident. One bet was placed on the women’s basketball game with a five game parlay. Only $70 was wagered in total.
Encore was able to see the error before the game started and they voided that section of the parlay bet. The casino then took more illegal bets on Boston College women’s basketball later that month due to a computer error. The casino says that the system automatically turned the bet option back on as an open event. The second violation has not been addressed, so we may see another fine for the company in August.
Adhering to Regulations
Sports betting companies as well as casino operators must adhere to local and state regulations. If any violations are found by regulators, fines are generally issued. The goal is for the company to pay the fine then make changes to ensure such an incident does not occur again.
Operators will train employees on regulations as well as ensure all technology is compliant to avoid any further instances.
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