State regulators reportedly said the restriction was introduced when Drew Brees, former NFL quarterback, became an interim assistant coach at Purdue.
New Jersey regulators prohibited the state’s sports bookmakers from accepting bets on the game three days before LSU defeated Purdue in the Citrus Bowl because state gambling laws were violated.
According to an ESPN report, last Friday, an order from NJDGE also prohibited the state’s sports bookmakers to void bets placed on the game after Dec 15.
Actually, the NJDGE order did not specify a person who violated state gambling laws. They said it was someone “associated with the Purdue soccer team.” One more ESPN report noted that it was Drew Brees, a retired NFL quarterback.
Brees was hired as an interim assistant coach on Dec 15 by Purdue Boilermakers, his native team. Apparently, it was only a part-time position for Brees, who was supposed to assist Boilermakers in preparing for Monday’s Citrus Bowl game against the LSU Tigers.
In a week, PointsBet announced on Twitter that its business relationship with Brees was over, citing compliance issues. In July 2021, Brees was hired by PointsBet as a brand ambassador.
According to PointsBet, “Although this step in his career is significant, we have decided to terminate the partnership agreement with Brees after carefully reviewing all aspects.” “Compliance with regulatory and legal standards, responsible gaming practices, and legal sports betting integrity are our main priorities, and through this decision, we will be able to fulfill that commitment.”
As per NJDGE, the person it pointed out breached a provision of the state gambling law, namely, 5:12A-11(f), which deals with issuing and renewing sports betting licenses. That section prohibits referees, coaches, athletes, and others to have “any interest in, control of, or otherwise being employed by an operator.”
In its July 2021 announcement of Brees’ hiring as a brand ambassador, PointsBet said the NFL legend “will also become a shareholder in PointsBet, taking a stake in the company to further illustrate the shared vision [between Brees and the operator].”
Indiana regulators did not seem to object to PointsBet’s business relationship with Brees for seven days before the agreement was terminated. Indiana sports bookmakers, including licensed PointsBet, did not accept bets on the Citrus Bowl.
LSU won the Citrus Bowl, defeating Purdue 63-7.
⚖️ New Jersey has restrictive gambling laws in place
New Jersey has restrictive rules regarding betting on sports for real money. Betting on college sports events in NJ is prohibited by the state constitution. They are also prohibited sports events in which a NJ college team participates, whatever the location of the event is.
BetMGM Sportsbook NJ violated college sports betting rules when it accepted bets on college sports events in the state twice in March 2021.
PointsBet seems to have attracted the regulator’s attention a year ago. Then, it started providing live dealer games in NJ as part of a partnership with Evolution.