NFL Seeks to Prevent Gambling Violations and Strengthen Education

Being a professional athlete usually means giving up on many betting opportunities. However, sports players are sometimes tempted to break the rules or are unaware of them, resulting in various violations. Because of that, the National Football League (NFL) seeks to better communicate its policies to the players.

Following a string of violations, with one player even claiming he was unaware of the gambling policies, the NFL unveiled a new document where it outlined what players can and cannot do. The document was first forwarded to ProFootballTalk (PFT), an NFL news outlet.

In the document, the NFL described the required compliance training for players and coaches. The league also encouraged teams to have an in-person training presentation from a member of the NFL’s Compliance team. If not possible, players and coaches should watch a video on the topic.

The full gambling policy is provided in the form of a player manual to NFL players each year. Players must then sign a document, confirming that they’ve received the manual.

Players Should Keep Six Rules in Mind

According to PFT, this year, the NFL outlined six primary rules that athletes should follow. The first of them is that NFL players cannot, under any circumstance, wager on the NFL. In addition, they cannot ask someone else to place a bet on their behalf.

While NFL players are allowed to play casino games or wager on certain other sports, they are absolutely prohibited from doing so at their team facility or stadium. They must also refrain from gambling while traveling for a road game or staying at a team hotel.

The fourth rule is that NFL players absolutely must not disclose inside information. Such information may otherwise be used to provide certain bettors with an unfair advantage.

Even if NFL team members wish to wager on another sport, they must refrain from entering a sportsbook during the NFL playing season, the league noted. Finally, it added that NFL players should not play daily fantasy football.

The NFL Must Make Sure the Message Sticks

PFT noted that, sadly, this message has failed to stick in past years. The news outlet considers the rule manuals to be “a bit of overkill” but hopes that the summarized rules will send a strong and clear message to the athletes.

PFT noted that the biggest challenge would be ensuring that the message sticks. However, another challenge would be deciding how to penalize players who breached the rules prior to the current clarification.

In other news, the investigation of Isaiah Rogers, who allegedly violated the gambling rules, continues.