DraftKings CEO Pushes Back on Calls to Ban Prop Bets

DraftKings CEO Jason Robins doesn't agree with the current movement to ban prop bets. Speaking to Front Office Sports on Radio Row, Robins discussed the initiative following recent sports betting scandals, calling any prohibition "crazy" and warning it would push wagering back into illegal markets.

Robins' comments came as regulators and sports bodies debated tighter controls on player-specific bets after several high-profile incidents across professional and college sports. Robins said the cases had drawn outsized attention but represented anomalies rather than evidence of a widespread integrity problem.

“Jumping to ‘let’s ban it’ is crazy,” he said. “It’s absolutely not the right answer.”

Momentum toward restrictions has been building in recent months. NCAA President Charlie Baker has called for a nationwide ban on college prop bets, and gambling regulators in the Ohio sports betting market have weighed new limits following a scandal involving Cleveland Guardians pitchers Luis Ortiz and Emmanuel Clase.

Additional investigations have included an indictment of NBA player Terry Rozier and probes involving roughly 30 current and former Division I men's basketball players. Robins argued these incidents accounted for a “tiny fraction” of athletes and said most participants had “never been accused of wrongdoing.”

Robins noted that the exposure of violations demonstrated that monitoring systems were functioning. He added that DraftKings had worked with leagues to refine its offerings, including eliminating turnover-based props and restricting pitch-by-pitch baseball betting.

Those steps were designed to reduce incentives for manipulation without eliminating entire categories of wagers. Robins said targeted changes were more effective than blanket bans, which he argued would create larger long-term risks.

The debate has coincided with DraftKings' expansion into competing with the best prediction markets. The company launched DraftKings Predictions in late December across 38 states, focusing on federally regulated event contracts available in states where online sports betting remains illegal.

Missouri regulators decline NCAA request

While national operators and leagues debate policy direction, state regulators have taken divergent approaches. Last month, the Missouri Gaming Commission rejected an NCAA request to restrict bets on individual college athletes' performance, though it left the possibility of revisiting the issue open.

Regulators cited the early stage of the Missouri sports betting market, which launched on December 1 after narrowly approving voter authorization, as a reason for rejecting the request. The NCAA urged multiple states to ban college-athlete prop bets and certain specialty wagers, arguing that such bets increased the risk of pressure, harassment, and bribery. 

It also referenced a federal indictment involving more than two dozen defendants accused of attempting to manipulate outcomes across nearly 30 games involving Division I men's basketball players.

Missouri regulators declined to alter rules less than two months into legalization, prioritizing market stability during rollout. Other states have taken a stronger stance. Louisiana, Maryland, Ohio, and Vermont have enacted a ban on individual prop bets involving college athletes since 2023.

The differing state responses show there is still no shared national approach to betting integrity as sports wagering and prediction markets expand.