Women’s Gambling Scandal Coming, Warns UConn Coach Amid Rise in College Betting
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Geno Auriemma, head coach of the UConn women’s basketball program, has warned that a gambling scandal is inevitable as betting becomes increasingly prevalent on college campuses. Amid the rise, a House subcommittee is scheduled to hold a hearing on college gambling next week.
“It’s only a matter of time, if we’re not careful, where these people start to think: ‘This is just normal behavior, man,’” Auriemma told Front Office Sports.
“It’s going to start affecting the game because the players playing it are going to get wrapped up in this, as we’ve seen already in the NBA a couple times, [and] as we saw years ago players in college getting caught up in the gambling thing,” he added.
Female Gamblers Becoming Increasingly Common
Over the last few years, more women have been betting on sports. More than 4.6 million U.S. women joined sports betting apps in 2021, with female user rates growing 115% compared to 2020.
Last year, the American Gaming Association estimated that 26% of sports bettors were women, with a 51% increase from 2023 to 2024 in women wagering on the Super Bowl.
A rise in viewers in women’s sports is also attracting more wagering on events. FanDuel reported accepting 1.8 million bets on the women’s US Open last year, a 32% increase since 2023. This has outpaced a 27% rise in men’s matches over the same period.
BetMGM, FanDuel, and DraftKings also reported sizable increases in wagers on women’s basketball. BetMGM reported a 175% increase in WNBA handle, while Caesars reported a 500%+ surge during opening matchups this season.
The rise has made it more socially acceptable for women to gamble on sports. This was evidenced when the WNBA deleted a video it had posted on its official X account showing players Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers making a $400 bet on a game.
Kids Unaware Of Gambling Risks, Says Auriemma
The availability of betting apps on smartphones means many college students are gambling, says Auriemma, and he worries they are unaware of the risks.
“I have a problem with a kid who really doesn’t understand what they’re doing, using a phone to bet on each play while they’re watching a game,” Auriemma said. “Now, when I was a kid, when I was in high school and college, you had to go find a bookie, and you needed to bet through a bookie. And he wasn’t taking a credit card. He wanted cash.”
He added that betting on sports was the “fastest way to be banned from playing college athletics.”
Female students, including several cheerleaders, were disciplined at Ole Miss in September for breaching betting rules.
Less Corruption Despite Betting Scandals, Says NCAA
College basketball was hit with a major gambling scandal this year. More than 39 players on 17 different NCAA men’s basketball teams attempted to fix more than 29 NCAA games, prosecutors say.
Despite the high-profile case, the NCAA and betting integrity monitors said that betting-related corruption in college basketball “largely subsided” last season.
“We haven’t had new, credible reports of games being compromised,” Jon Duncan, NCAA vice president of enforcement, noted.
House To Review Rise Of Sports Gambling On College Campuses
The availability of prediction markets for 18 year-olds has given more college students access to gambling than ever before.
Kalshi is facing scrutiny over its marketing practices, which have depicted college-age females declaring that trading is a viable way to pay rent.
According to an investigation and analysis by CNN, young adults aged 18 to 21 had traded an estimated $5.4 billion on Kalshi between January and August this year. Roughly $3.9 billion of that was on sports contracts and parlays. That figure will have risen considerably since the start of the NFL season.
Amid concerns that more college students are gambling, the House Committee on Education and Workforce will hold a hearing titled “The Rise of Sports Gambling on College Campuses” next week.
The hearing will be open to the public and will be live-streamed on the Committee’s website on November 11.
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