Shady Bets & Rigged Games: The Craziest Gambling Scandals in Sports
Betting’s Dirty Laundry
Betting has always been a controversial topic, with one of the hottest debates revolving around match-fixing and other unethical acts by coaches, players, and team staff. Concerns grew even more when the Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, opening the doors for legal betting and allowing Americans to place sports bets or play blackjack for real money. However, even before betting was legalized, there were already numerous sports betting scandals.
Betting Scandals in Sports
Sports and betting have become a big part of North American culture. Unfortunately, not all of it has been on the up and up. Let’s take a look at some of the most notorious sports betting scandals in history.
1919 World Series
The Chicago White Sox were heavy favorites going into the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds. What should’ve been a typical October classic turned into one of the biggest sports betting scandals in baseball history. Arnold Rothstein, a well-known gambler, allegedly bribed eight Sox players to throw the series, offering them between $70,000 and $100,000 each.
Rumors started flying right after game one, but the series continued, and the Sox shockingly lost 3-5. The scandal seemed to fade into the background until a year later when an investigation into another match-fixing case unearthed the 1919 World Series mess. The eight players involved were banned from baseball for life — and sadly, even those who weren’t fully involved, like the legendary “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, had their careers and reputations permanently stained.
The NBA Referee
Referees are supposed to keep the game fair and impartial — but that wasn’t the case with Tim Donaghy. Over his 14-season career, Donaghy officiated over 800 NBA games. On the surface, he seemed like a straight-laced, no-nonsense ref. Behind the scenes, though, it was a different story.
Donaghy leaked inside information to two acquaintances in Philadelphia, who then placed bets on games he was officiating, knowing the calls he was likely to make. While the full extent of the scheme’s impact on game results is still unclear, Donaghy eventually faced federal conspiracy charges. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison and slapped with a $500,000 fine.
The Basketball Player Who Underperformed
In one of the most shocking modern-day sports betting scandals, former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter took betting on sports to a whole new level. Alongside four co-conspirators, Porter placed bets against his own performance — and then deliberately underperformed to cash in on those bets.
He’d even pull himself out of games early to ensure his numbers stayed low. Eventually, Porter pleaded guilty and was released on $250,000 bail while awaiting trial. The NBA banned him from professional basketball for life, and his case became a clear example of the league’s vigilance when it comes to spotting betting irregularities.
The Gambling Interpreter
One of the strangest betting scandals in sports betting involved none other than MLB MVP Shohei Ohtani. After signing a massive 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers, Ohtani’s name was unexpectedly linked to an illegal gambling investigation.
Authorities found two wire transfer receipts in Ohtani’s name while investigating bookmaker Mathew Bowyer. A deeper dive into the transactions revealed that $4 million had been transferred directly from Ohtani’s account to Bowyer.
But there was a twist — it turned out that Ohtani’s longtime interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, had access to his bank accounts and racked up massive gambling debts without the baseball star’s knowledge. Mizuhara later pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud and admitted to making the transfers himself. Now, he’s facing up to 33 years in prison, a $1.25 million fine, and over $18 million in restitution payments to Ohtani.
What Are League Rules Around Gambling on Sports?
Every sports league has its own rules about betting — and while they differ slightly, most share a few common principles:
- NBA: Players, teams, and league employees are strictly prohibited from betting on NBA games or any related properties (like the WNBA, G-League, and summer league). That said, if sports betting is legal in their state, they can bet on other sports.
- NFL: Players can bet on non-NFL events through legal sportsbooks, but coaches, officials, trainers, and other league personnel are banned from all sports betting.
- MLB: In-uniform personnel and team/league employees can gamble on anything except baseball.
- NHL: Hockey players can’t bet on their own league but are allowed to wager on non-NHL events.
On top of these rules, leagues often host seminars and training sessions to educate players and staff on responsible gambling, prevent addiction, and help them navigate the increasingly complex world of legal sports betting.
