Integrity Body Established by US Sports Betting Operators

With sports betting on the rise in the United States, the operators need to take certain steps in order to regulate it as good as possible. The popular brands in the country have ed forces…

…with an aim to form an integrity body!

The first organization of this kind in the United States is the Sports Wagering Integrity Monitoring Association (SWIMA). This is a non-profit group and it will cooperate with state and tribal regulatory bodies, law enforcement and multiple stake holders.

The primary goal of the organization is to monitor suspicious betting activity.

The Founding Fathers

The newly-formed body has been modeled after the European ESSA that controls the shady actions in the Old Continent. SWIMA will have the identical role…

…and the are encouraged to submit any information about suspicious action no matter from which state they come. Once alerted, the organization will act accordingly.

A large number of suppliers are considered the founding fathers. They include 888 Holdings, Paddy Power Betfair’s Fan Duel and DraftKings.

The role of the chief integrity officer has been appointed to Mr. George Rover a former New Jersey assistant attorney general and gaming regulator. In the meantime, the board of trustees will consist of two :

• MGM Resorts’ CCO and Senior Vice President Stephen Martino
• Caesars’ Public Policy and Corporate Responsibility Executive Vice President Jan Jones

Important Milestone

SWIMA will have an important role in the United States regarding sports betting and it is essential that everyone works together. Public Affairs Vice President at the American Gaming Association (AGA), Sarah Slane pointed out:

“The formation of SWIMA serves as another important milestone toward realizing the benefits of a legal, regulated sports betting market in the US, which provides robust consumer protection, increased transparency and additional tax revenues for state and local governments.”

“The announcement comes at a critical time as dozens of states and sovereign tribal nations are poised to pursue legal sports betting in 2019,” she added.

As the sports betting continues to spread like wildfire, after a historic decision by the United States Supreme Court to make it legal, the AGA, that opposed that decision…

…is now doing everything to regulate it best way possible.

Legalizing Sports Betting

Whereas some of the states such as New Jersey, Delaware or Rhode Island have already used the opportunities and legalized sports betting, the others are just “ing the race”. For instance, the situation in South Dakota is complicated but they are trying everything to accelerate the process.

In the years, the United States is expected to become one of the biggest sports betting markets in the world. Most likely not all states are going to allow sports wagering, but it is now in full swing and a lot of countries are expected to regulate it in the near future.

Source:

“US sports operators establish integrity body”, igamingbusiness.com, November 28, 2018.