When Massachusetts legalized sports betting in 2022, Charlie Baker, the president of the NCAA, was the state's governor. The moderate Republican acknowledges that he misjudged sports betting's penetration into Americana and the collegiate experience three years later, in a new position supervising college athletics.

In March 2023, Baker, a well-liked two-term governor, was named NCAA president. Examining the effects of sports gambling liberalization on college athletes and students was one of his initial assignments.

“After my appointment, I went out and visited about 1,000 student athletes on campuses. So much of those conversations were about sports betting, and especially the abuse and harassment that came with it,” Baker said in an interview with Yahoo! Sports.

According to Baker, he found that wagering on professional and collegiate sports was common. He came to the conclusion that the hug resulted from legalizing.

“I do believe that when something is illegal, people think twice about it,” Baker said. “So, you can’t underestimate the impact all these commercials have had in making sports betting socially acceptable.”

Buyer's Remorse 

In April 2022, Baker signed the sports betting legislation in Massachusetts. Baker declared himself "glad to be able to sign this bill into law" at the time.

The sports betting bill in Massachusetts imposes a 20% state tax on online wagers and a 15% state tax on in-person earnings. Sports gambling has generated more than $300 million in state taxes for the commonwealth. Baker questions whether it was worthwhile.

According to Baker, sports betting "is everywhere," with businesses like DraftKings and FanDuel flooding TV commercial breaks and ESPN and the like discussing in-game odds.

"I don’t think anybody was anticipating that it would be as ubiquitous as it became when DraftKings and FanDuel, in particular, created phone-based opportunities for people to bet on pretty much anything,” Baker said.

Props involving college athletes, or wagers that only rely on a player's performance, have long been opposed by the NCAA president. According to Baker, prop bets increase the likelihood that a player may be harassed online through comments and posts on social media or by a nearby fan on the court or field.

“It’s definitely where most of the really aggressive harassment directed at kids is coming from. And the second thing is the pressure that the underperforming prop bets put on young people. I don’t think that’s something that’s fully understood,” Baker said.

The Situation of Sports Betting

39 states plus Washington, DC, have approved and regulated some form of sports gambling since the US Supreme Court ruled that states had the authority to decide whether or not sports betting is permitted. However, as the holdout nations adopt a more cautious stance, the fast spread has slowed in recent years.

Texas, Georgia, South Carolina, and California are notable states where sports betting is still prohibited.