NFL gambling policy extends to stadium employees
As sports gambling markets continue to grow, the NFL is attempting to protect the integrity of the game. The league has put forth policies to prohibit its employees from wagering on different aspects of the sport.
It’s not just players, coaches and game officials that must abide by the NFL’s policies, though. In relatively broad terms, the league says the policies apply to “all full-time and part-time personnel including League office employees, club employees, players, owners, coaches, athletic trainers, game officials, security personnel, game-day stadium personnel and other staff, consultants, and temporary contract workers.”
The area that drew some question marks? Game-day stadium personnel and other staff. Who all does that include? According to Pro Football Talk, it’s not quite as bad as you might expect.
Essentially, if you can get on the field, the policy applies to you. The NFL clarified, saying “It extends to game-day staff who have access to the playing field or the coaches and players, including chain crews, ball crews, locker room attendants, and medical providers.”
So, it doesn’t include everyone working at an NFL stadium like the phrasing might lead you to believe. But, still, it’s a pretty exhaustive list.
The NFL has shown it’s taking these violations very seriously. The league suspended Calvin Ridley a full season for violating the policies. A number of Detroit Lions also face serious suspensions because of their alleged involvement in sports gambling.
NFL player reportedly loses $8 million in sports gambling
The NFL wants to get a handle of sports gambling within the league to protect the integrity of the game and potentially protect players from themselves. One anonymous player lost an absurd amount of money by betting.
According to ProFootballTalk‘s Mike Florio, one NFL player gambled away $8 million last year. The player’s name was not mentioned in the report.
That’s an amount of money not many of us can fathom. So, trying to process losing that much through sports gambling is even more difficult.
Because the league works with these companies, many view the gambling policies as hypocritical. But the league has to strike some sort of balance in order to protect things from getting too messy during games. There’s certainly no easy solution to the problem.
Each year, the NFL provides players with updates on league policies, including those on gambling. Still, some players are taking the risk by placing wagers that go against those rules.