Law Enforcement Involved after Bettor Threatens College World Series Team

Any gambling activity is related to a certain degree of risk, and this applies to sports betting. Regardless if some bettors consider themselves as seasoned, no wager can be absolutely certain. This causes frustration and not everyone takes losses lightly.

In light of the legal betting expansion across the United States, many gamblers found it interesting to wager on college games. But instead of betting on the outcome, gamblers consider the popular prop bets which permit wagers on aspects of a particular game like the individual performance of players.

After losing some bets, disgruntled gamblers thought it was a good idea to threaten student and professional athletes. While some cases involved baseless threats and harassment such as insults, others were serious enough to get the attention of social media platforms and even law enforcement.

This is precisely the case involving one NCAA team that competed in the 2023 College World Series (CWS), a newly released report suggests. The Association’s president, Charlie Baker, who recently participated in the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics convention taking place in Las Vegas, revealed that one bettor threatened a team that participated in the competition.

Police Intervenes to Protect the Team

Baker, who was interviewed by CBS Sports, explained: “There was a bettor who threatened a team.” Moreover, the NCAA’s president explained: “The threat was serious enough (that) we showed it to authorities. They said, ‘You know what, we think we should probably hang out with you guys for the rest of the tournament.'”

When interviewed, Baker did not disclose which team was affected by the threat made by the gambler. It is unclear what the threat consisted of and whether it targeted one or more players or the whole team. Still, per the NCAA president’s words, the threat was serious enough to see the involvement of law enforcement.

Recently, Baker once again spoke about the importance of the implementation of a college prop bet ban. Bryan Fischer from Fox Sports revealed that Baker said on the topic: “This all has to stop. I wish sports betting had just stayed in Las Vegas.”

The latest report doesn’t reveal whether or not the bettor who threatened one of the 2023 CWS teams faces any charges.

It is unclear whether a state or federal-level law enforcement agency was involved in the case and what actions have been taken to ensure the same gambler doesn’t make further threats against college or professional sports teams.

Amid the growing concern about such threats and harassment, lawmakers and sports leagues urged for the implementation of tough penalties for such individuals.