Entain Foundation U.S. educates athletes on sports betting, has plans to reach NFL locker rooms

From the Alabama baseball betting scandal that saw head coach Brad Bohannon fired to the NFL’s suspending 10 players this offseason for gambling violations, the need for sports betting education, specifically in athletics, is more paramount than ever.

Everywhere people look, betting ads have become embedded in the sports experience, from live odds to games, to promotional deals from FanDuel, DraftKings, and operators alike. And while most sporting leagues have guidelines and rules surrounding sports betting, athletes can’t escape the betting boom since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act was repealed over five years ago.

That’s why Entain Foundation U.S., founded in 2019 with ongoing partnerships with the NFLPA’s Professional Athletes Foundation, MLSPA, and the NCAA, among other leagues and organizations, are working vigorously to educate both collegiate students and pro athletes on sports integrity, problem gambling, and much more.

“We’re really trying to be ahead of the curve and self-regulating, explaining to the public, the athletes, the regulators, and the politicians,” said Bill Pascrell III, a trustee for Entain Foundation and a Princeton Public Affairs Group partner. “It’s a proper mix of balance, of focus on integrity, the athletes, the people around the athletes, including the agents, and at the collegiate level, educating people at that, you know, 18 to 21 level before they’re able to bet.”

» READ MORE: NFL announces Denver’s Eyioma Uwazurike is suspended for gambling violations

In addition to Parscell, the other trustees are former New York Giants star Amani Toomer and Martin Lycka, a senior vice president at Entain. The organization, created by Entain PLC (a 50/50 joint venture with MGM Resorts International) and Entain Global Foundation, educates athletes through workshops, seminars, events, and customized projects.

One of its presentation partners, Epic Risk Management, of the United Kingdom, comprises former athletes who share powerful stories that focus on how their careers were severely affected by their gambling addiction.

These speakers can drive their points home by relating to their athlete audience on a personal level.

“When you see somebody who is a pro, it just kind of like makes you do two things: First, it says, I’m going to listen to what this guy says,” Toomer, a Super Bowl winning receiver and returner, said. “And second of all, you look at the guy’s size and think he’s not that much bigger than me, so it makes it more attainable.”

“The audience can relate to it, because they happen to be athletes themselves with the key message being, don’t bet on your sport, and if you can avoid it, don’t bet at all,” Lycka said.

» READ MORE: NCAA panel changes reinstatement guidelines for sports wagering violations

When Toomer entered college at Michigan in 1992, the culture around sports betting was simply don’t do it, or your career was ruined. Before betting was legalized, Toomer said, both the collegiate and NFL levels had a one-strike-you’re-out policy — making himself, his teammates, and other NFL colleagues fearful of gambling at all.

That didn’t mean gambling didn’t happen on college campuses back then. A recent story by the Associated Press said the NCAA has identified 175 sports betting violations since 2018, with 17 active investigations, which includes athletes, coaches, and administrators placing small bets to giving inside information that could have affected the integrity of games. These recent findings likely sparked the NCAA’s governing body to revise its guidelines for reinstating athletes who commit gambling violations.

That’s where Entain Foundation comes in. Through the foundation’s funding, Epic Risk Management agreed to partner with the NCAA in 2021, and the collaboration have visited more than 50 college campuses, including the University of Cincinnati in February.

“One of the most vulnerable areas, I feel, in gambling would be in collegiate sports, because they aren’t getting paid,” Toomer said. “I just felt like it was one of those situations where going to universities, talking to student-athletes, and just making them aware, would be something that I could get behind.”

“The feedback in these sessions have been extremely well received, and if anything, there are more and more colleges that are prepared to sign up to the program,” Lycka added.

Entain and EPIC have even been allowed into locker rooms at some universities, with an opportunity to have their messages heard in intimate settings with little to no distractions.

The goal isn’t just to reach student-athletes though; the organization also reaches everyday students, since most shouldn’t be betting anyway considering the legal age to place a wager is 21.

“A lot of times, the universities don’t want us talking to the general student body, but what we do is, we go just a little off campus,” Parscell said. “And we talk to them saying, ‘If you’re going to bet, make sure you do it legally.’”

» READ MORE: There have been 175 sports-betting violations since 2018, 17 active investigations, NCAA head says

Originally striking a deal with the NFLPA in 2020, Entain and Epic provided virtual problem gambling awareness and player protection workshops during a restricted time because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The deal, led by Toomer, who initially helped the company set up a meeting with the Giants in 2019 before the NFL had mandated programs to curtail gambling, now allows Entain Foundation to meet the NFLPA at its offices for executive leader programs after extending its partnership through 2026 in March. Entain, which pays for all of these sessions, also meets with players off-site in small huddles.

What the organization wants next, though, is to gain NFL locker room access to give these presentations.

“We were told to get the NFLPA and we got them,” Pascrell said. “We met with lots of teams throughout the NFL, now we’re taking it upstairs ... in hopes that they understand and appreciate that it’s got to be more than just checking a box and throwing money at a certain organization to put a 1-800 number up, because that’s not really impacting the players.”

The NFL has increased awareness of its gambling policy, sending memos to all 32 teams and even enlisting the help of retired quarterback Tom Brady to send a message to players.

» READ MORE: With more suspensions on horizon, what is the NFL’s policy on gambling?

The biggest issue with the NFL’s recent uptick in gambling violations, all three trustees agreed, is the lack of betting education for athletes.

“I feel like the more people are aware and educated about these situations, these pitfalls, you’re less likely to fall because I think most people are not trying to maliciously get away with stuff,” Toomer said. “I think most of the time, there is an oversight.”

Entain Foundation recently partnered with the NHL Alumni Association to educate retired players on sports betting, but it is also working to expand to the NHLPA, along with the horse racing industry.