Amid an extensive debate around betting on college athletics in the US, the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) of the National College Athletic Association (NCAA) has moved to enhance its gambling education efforts.
PAC has become the first NCAA Division III conference to sign a consultancy and educational programme with EPIC Global Solutions, an international gambling harm minimisation consultancy group.
The conference will integrate an EPIC education programme focused on helping staff and student athletes identify the potential risks of gambling at a time of rapid growth for the US industry.
PASPA, the legislation preventing most states from launching regulated betting markets, was repealed in 2018 – the following years have seen 38 states launch betting markets, though the rules on what can and can’t be bet on vary per state.
Though all betting states allow wagering on college games, some do not allow betting on in-state college teams and some have outright player prop bets on college sports.
Betting on college games is a somewhat touchy topic due to concerns about college athletes being potentially more at risk of problem gambling, gambling-related harm, or being susceptible to sports integrity violations.
Joe Onderko, PAC Commissioner, said: “Since sports betting became legal and so accessible online, the PAC and administrators in our conference have been searching for a way to educate our student-athletes and staff about the potential dangers of online gambling.
“This partnership with EPIC Global Solutions will help provide our conference schools with the tools to help our athletes be better informed about possible issues that can be brought on by online gambling.”
Headquartered in London, EPIC works with several prominent international sports leagues both in its founding country of the UK and further afield, case in point in the US. Its stateside activity has included work with Major League Baseball (MLB), but college sports has become a particular area of focus in recent years.
The company’s work with PAC will start with an initial six month consultancy period covering multiple universities. The programme will involve participation from athletic directors and other key staff, using EPIC’s consultants’ lived experience of gambling harm.
“There has been plenty of recent discussion around sports wagering involving student-athletes, so this is a timely collaboration,” explained Mike Holinski, VP of Partnerships at EPIC.
“We commend the PAC for taking additional steps to ensure that every individual within their competition is receiving additional information on the kind of threats they may face while competing in sports with significant public interest.”
