Bill Simmons Under Review for Proxy Betting

Bill Simmons, a well-known sports podcaster, is under investigation by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission. This follows his admission on a podcast episode that he used his daughter’s boyfriend to place sports bets on his behalf. The commission disclosed the review on Tuesday, two days after Simmons revealed his actions on air.

Simmons, the creator of The Ringer, resides in California, where sports betting is illegal. In Massachusetts, mobile and online betting is legal; however, proxy betting, or having someone else place bets for you, is illegal. This practice is also prohibited by FanDuel, the sportsbook where the bets were placed.

A spokesperson for the Massachusetts Gaming Commission confirmed they are looking into Simmons’ comments. Additionally, FanDuel, the exclusive sports betting partner of The Ringer, reported the situation to the commission and canceled the bets Simmons placed.

During the podcast episode, Simmons explained the circumstances, revealing a strong interest in placing bets on the UCLA overs. Unable to make the bets himself, he enlisted someone he trusted, his daughter’s boyfriend, to handle the transactions using his FanDuel account.

Admitting to the practice, Simmons recounted the steps he took. “I get the code to make sure it’s me to my phone, I give him the code, he logs in. And I have all this money that I had from last year because I actually hit a bunch of futures last year. And he’s putting in bets for me,” he noted.

Simmons later acknowledged his lack of awareness regarding the legality of proxy betting in Massachusetts. In a subsequent episode, he expressed regret, saying, “I did not know about the proxy rules. Yeah, there are some real rules with this stuff, and they’ve ruled that not only are the bets going to be voided — and I learned my lesson.”

Bill Simmons, formerly of ESPN, is a prominent figure in the podcasting space. His show, “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” ranked No. 22 overall and No. 2 in the sports category on Spotify as of Tuesday. In 2020, Spotify bought The Ringer, a sports and pop culture site and podcast network, for over $200 million.