NCAA Delays Rule Change Allowing Athletes to Bet on Pro Sports

The Division I Board of Directors on Tuesday voted to delay a rule change that will allow NCAA student-athletes and athletic department staff members to bet on professional sports. The rule change now will not take effect until Nov. 22, according to the NCAA’s news release.

NCAA Rule Change Now Goes Into Effect Nov. 22

The Division I Board voted to push back the effective date of the sports betting legislative change, moving it from Nov. 1 to Nov. 22, one day after the close of a membership rescission period.

The NCAA Division I legislative process allows 30 days for each Division I school to vote to rescind a proposal if it is adopted by less than 75% of the Division I cabinet.

The DI Board voted to delay the effective date of the sports betting legislative change to Nov. 22, which is one day after the close of a membership rescission period.

DI rules afford 30 days for each DI school to vote to rescind a proposal if it is adopted by less than a 75%…

— NCAA News (@NCAA_PR) October 28, 2025

According to the NCAA, sports betting rules are the same across all three divisions.

Division III voted Oct. 21 and Division II voted Oct. 22 to change the rules, but the Division I pause also delays the effective date for Divisions II and III.

Student-Athletes Cannot Bet On College Sports

This new policy will not alter the NCAA rule prohibiting athletes from betting on college sports. The NCAA also forbids sharing information about college competitions with bettors.

“This change recognizes the realities of today’s sports environment without compromising our commitment to protecting the integrity of college competition or the well-being of student-athletes,” said Roberta Page, director of athletics at Slippery Rock and chair of the Division II Management Council.

The rule change comes as the NCAA continues its investigation into over a dozen active and former student-athletes for potential sports betting violations in recent years.

Last month, the NCAA banned three men’s college basketball players for sports betting, stating they had bet on their own games at Fresno State and San Jose State and were able to share thousands of dollars in payouts.

All three athletes are no longer enrolled at their schools.

NBA Player, Coach Arrested In Federal Gambling Probe

The NCAA’s latest news also comes less than a week after Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were among 34 defendants arrested in two federal gambling investigations.

Rozier was accused of exploiting private information about players to win bets on NBA games.

Federal prosecutors allege that Rozier provided nonpublic information about his plans to leave a March 23, 2023, game early to a friend, Deniro Laster, who then sold it to bettors for about $100,000. Rozier played just over nine minutes before leaving the game due to a foot injury.

Per the indictment, Rozier paid for Laster to travel to Philadelphia to collect the proceeds from the scheme before driving to Rozier’s home to count the money with him. Rozier and Laster were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The same year Rozier was alleged to have pulled himself from an NBA game as part of gambling schemes, he was facing an $8 million tax lien from the Internal Revenue Service, per county clerk records obtained by ESPN’s Paula Levigne and David Purdum.

The NBA placed Rozier and Billups on leave after the indictment became public.