NFL Employing New Officials To Guard Against Gambling Issues

After professional sports leagues have seen their share of player controversies over the last few years, the NFL is now planning to utilize an “integrity representative” for each team to oversee gambling policy.

The league recently announced the creation of the positions and will employ retired FBI or executive-level police officers to oversee issues related to gambling and to monitor game integrity. The additions come as the league is set to kick off the 2024-25 season on Sept. 5.

The integrity representative “supports investigations related to potential violations of the NFL Gambling Policy and other game integrity-related policies and procedures,” the league noted in announcing the position.

Following The Policy

There are several rules players, coaches, and staff must follow when it comes to sports betting and gambling. Some of the main rules include:

• never betting on the NFL
• never having someone else bet for them
• never gambling in any way at a team facility or stadium
• never gambling while traveling for a road game or staying at a team hotel
• never sharing team or league “inside information”
• never entering a sportsbook during the NFL playing season
• never playing daily fantasy football

The integrity representative “serves as an additional resource to clubs & players for gambling or integrity-related questions/issues,” the league noted.

For every NFL game and key events, external third-party monitors such as Genius Sports and IC360 are also already reviewing odds, line movements, and betting activity that may indicate game manipulation or a leak of non-public information. Alerts are made in real-time with gameday, weekly, and season reports provided.

The moves come after the league has seen several players facing punishment after violating the league’s betting rules. In January, a member of the New England Patriots was arrested for underage gambling while in college.

In December, the league’s former vice president of officiating Dean Blandino said that officials are approached by fans at times about swaying games to help gamblers. In December, reports surfaced that a former employee with the Jacksonville Jaguars stole millions of dollars from the team to play high-stakes daily fantasy sports.

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