The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) has penalized DraftKings, Rush Street Interactive (RSI), and Kambi with fines totaling $40,000 for violating state wagering regulations. The infractions involved accepting bets on unauthorized events and taking wagers after games had already concluded, underscoring ongoing challenges for sportsbooks in complying with state guidelines.
DraftKings fined for unauthorized events:
In documents (pdf) posted on its website, the DGE stated that DraftKings faced the largest individual fine of $20,000, stemming from multiple violations between 2020 and 2022. In one notable incident, DraftKings allowed bets on games in the Russian Super League for nine months, mistakenly identifying the league as an approved basketball competition in New Jersey. This error, attributed to Kambi’s misclassification of the league, resulted in over $61,000 in wagers from customers. Upon realizing the issue, the DGE required DraftKings to void all wagers and refund customers.
As Associated Press reports, another DraftKings infraction involved accepting 484 bets on unapproved table tennis matches in 2020. These matches were erroneously enabled for wagering due to missteps by Kambi, which at the time provided technology services for DraftKings. The most recent issue occurred in February 2022 when DraftKings accepted 182 preseason NFL bets, totaling nearly $7,000. In this case, DraftKings did not involve Kambi but failed to provide the state with the necessary details about what the bets entailed.
Rush Street Interactive’s compliance failures:
Rush Street Interactive, a longtime sportsbook operator, was fined $10,000 for accepting bets on games that had already concluded or begun. In November 2021, the operator allowed 16 wagers totaling $1,523 on a college basketball game between the University of North Carolina-Asheville and Tennessee Tech University. The game had already ended with UNC-Asheville securing a win when the bets were placed. According to documents, the issue occurred due to a network connectivity failure that prevented Kambi from receiving timely updates from its sports data provider. This error led to the game remaining available in the betting markets.
Further violations by RSI surfaced in early 2022. In February, the company accepted 13 wagers worth $8,150 on a PGA golf event with pre-match odds, even though the event had already started. Kambi explained that a recently hired trader failed to input the correct closing time for bets, leading to the oversight. A similar situation arose in March 2022 when RSI processed seven bets totaling $2,900 on three Magic City Jai Alai games despite their outcomes being known. Kambi attributed this incident to another connectivity issue.
Kambi’s role and broader implications:
Kambi, a technology partner to both DraftKings and RSI during these incidents, was fined $10,000 for its involvement. The Malta-based company stated that it has since revised its internal procedures, updated its guidelines, and retrained staff to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
These fines come amid a series of penalties issued to sportsbooks operating in New Jersey in 2024. DraftKings has already been penalized earlier this year, paying a $100,000 fine for reporting inaccuracies in sports betting data. Regulators described these reporting failures as “gross errors.” Similarly, in September, bet365 was fined $33,000 for accepting wagers on past events over a nearly year-long period. Just weeks ago, British operator William Hill was penalized $20,000 for comparable infractions, illustrating a persistent issue of sportsbooks falling afoul of state regulations.
New Jersey’s strict enforcement of its betting laws reflects the state’s commitment to maintaining a fair and transparent sports betting market. The recurrence of these violations highlights the challenges operators face in ensuring compliance with the state’s stringent requirements.
Despite inquiries, neither DraftKings, Rush Street Interactive, nor Kambi offered comments regarding the latest fines. The DGE has made it clear that it will continue to monitor operators closely and enforce penalties for noncompliance.
