The WNBA doesn’t appear to be taking what could be a direct violation of its own anti-gambling policy very seriously whatsoever.
Ahead of Wednesday night’s matchup between the Dallas Wings and Atlanta Dream, the WNBA’s official X account shared a video showing Dallas’ Paige Bueckers and Atlanta’s Angel Reese – two of the league’s most well-known players – making a $400 wager on the game. The WNBA was quick to delete the post, but not before many were able to share and also capture recordings of the video.
A WNBA spokesperson released a statement on Thursday claiming that the quickly deleted video was “intended to be lighthearted,” but that it “simply missed the mark.”
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“While the social media post was intended to be lighthearted, WNBA players are well aware of the league’s policies prohibiting betting on WNBA games and receive training every year reinforcing those policies,” the statement read.
“We recognized that the post missed the mark, removed it shortly after it was published, and addressed the matter internally. We will also use this as an opportunity to reemphasize with the players involved that conversations about wagering on WNBA games, even when intended as a joke, can have negative consequences.”
It is unclear whether the statement’s note that the matter was handled “internally” is in reference to the league having conversations with Reese and Bueckers about the clip or the individual who originally shared the video across the league’s official social media. OutKick contacted the league for further clarification but did not immediately hear back.
When reached for comment about the video and any potential in-house investigations regarding the video, a Dream spokesperson told OutKick that the team has “no additional information to share other than what the league released.” The Wings were not reached for comment.
Following Atlanta’s 82-81 win on Wednesday, a laughing Reese joked that she would be requesting Bueckers’ Apple Pay to receive her winnings from the wager.
Betting of any kind is strictly prohibited under the WNBA’s new collective bargaining agreement, with Section 5 of Article 14 in the agreement dedicated to gambling regulations.
“Any player found by the Commissioner after a hearing to have been guilty of wagering (directly or indirectly), or of offering or attempting to wager, money or anything of value on the outcome, score, or any other aspect of any WNBA Competition shall, in the sole discretion of the Commissioner, be subject to a fine, suspension, and/or dismissal and disqualification from any further association with the WNBA,” sub-section c in the agreement reads.
While the WNBA described the wager between Bueckers and Reese as being “lighthearted,” it was still a bet made between two players, caught on video, and shared across social media. One would think that WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has the evidence to potentially impose punishments.
Other professional sports leagues have strict anti-gambling policies in place that carry severe punishments.
NFL players are prohibited from placing any wagers on NFL games. An NFL player wagering on an NFL game that does not involve his team carries an indefinite suspension of 1-year minimum, while wagering on your own team results in an indefinite 2-year suspension.
In the MLB, if a player is found to be betting on games not involving their own team, the player is handed a one-year suspension. If found to be betting on games involving their own team, a lifetime ban is enforced under Major League Rule 21.
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