MGM Springfield and Encore Boston Harbor have been found guilty of providing over $1,200 worth of illegal sports wagers just one month into in-person betting legalisation.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) launched investigations into these bets which occurred in February, when wagers placed on 2 Harvard University basketball matches were authorised at MGM Springfield. This was allowed because the university was incorrectly listed as an institution registered out-of-state.

Designated in Connecticut instead of Cambridge when the “blacklist document” was written, which stated that wagers on collegiate sport in Massachusetts are restricted to only competitions with four or more competitors, such as March Madness.

BetMGM responded at the time with a plan to start daily audits of all offered wagers, however, the MGC still intends to conduct “judicial-like” hearings on April 14th to determine potential fines or any other repercussions.

On the same day it is also scheduled that a case involving Encore Boston Harbour will be reviewed. Regarding patrons that were allowed to place illegal wagers on a Boston College women’s basketball game.

These wagers were offered and accepted because of a glitch in the backend system which is run by GAN. A vendor that assists Encore in curating and auditing the list of events available for wagering. This is not the first time Encore has been caught under such an offence, which MGC’s Sports Betting Director was keen to point out.

Patrons were permitted to place wagers on another women’s collegiate basketball game at the start of the same month. A third-party involved in running in-person sports betting at Encore’s casino, would later afford the answer as to why this was allowed to occur. Stating that in a rush to upload a list of approved betting events mere days before retail wagering went live in Massachusetts such issues were completely overlooked.

Deliberation is still being had with regards to the exacting punishment for both breeches ahead of both operator’s hearings in April.

Massachusetts only legalised sports betting last summer, with the legislation coming into force this January, becoming the 36th state to legalise it. These offences come at a very early stage of this law’s creation so perhaps this is not indicative of a serious issue but rather a good direction that has begun with a few unsavoury quirks.

Either way it is seen, the court rulings will set a precedent that will affect the prosperity and safety of the industry to come.

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