Massachusetts Set To Approve First-In-The-Nation Regulations On Sports Betting Player Limits

By Bill Speros Dec 13th, 2025 11:05 AM EST

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Massachusetts next week is ready approve first-in-the-nation regulations on player limits imposed by sports books, Bookies.com has learned. Across Massachusetts and elsewhere, legal online sportsbook patrons have seen their wagers cut to zero, or close to it. But often - if not always - only after winning.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) plans a vote on regulations concerning player limits during a meeting Thursday. An MGC source says the measure enjoys majority support on the Commission. The source adds the regulation it will be "tougher than expected" in terms of patron protection.

Regulators will weigh both those patron protection concerns against potential losses to sportsbooks. Legal books face continued competition from offshore and illegal operators. In addition, prediction markets such as Kalshi, Robinhood, and Polymarket now offer sports event contracts. Those platforms federally regulated and offered in all 50 states.

The MGC met in on Sept. 30 - mostly in executive session - to discuss player limits.

“What we’ve been hearing from members of the public is that if you show a tendency to win, you will be limited. And if you show a tendency to lose, you will have that limit raised,” said MGC Sports Wagering Division Chief Carrie Torrisi during the public portion of that meeting.

MCG Chair Jordan Maynard appeared here Saturday at the National Council of Gaming Legislators Winter Meeting. He spoke as part of a Legislator/Regulator Roundtable. MGC Commissioner Paul Brodeur addressed the group Friday as part of a responsible gaming roundtable.

"We're taking up limiting again," Maynard said. But neither he nor anyone else here from the MGC would comment publicly on any specific regulation or when it would be passed.

Operators’ Initial Snub Triggered Ire Of Commissioners

Operators typically do not notify players when their limits are cut. Nor do explain the reasons for the restrictions, which commissioners view as an issue of "fundamental fairness."

This lack of transparency in limiting policies became a significant consumer protection concern issue for the MGC.

The Commonwealth first approached the issue in 2024 after receiving multiple complaints from sports books customers. They claimed regulated sports books limited them because they won.   

The Gaming Commission initially asked operators to join them for a discussion on the matter in May of 2024. Only 1 of the state’s retail and online operators initially agreed to cooperate with the Commission. That triggered anger both in public and in private among Commissioners. The MGC upped the ante 3 months later. It gave operators a second chance. Commissioners let it be known they would be putting their licenses at risk. Or face an outright ban on player limits, if they chose to cooperate.

A subsequent public hearing on player limits was held on Sept. 11, 2024. The MGC commissioned a study of its regulated operators seeking to determine how many players were being limited.

It found 0.64% of the 2.1 million online wagering accounts in the state (or approximately 13,400) were limited by operators. No reason were given for the limitations. Patrons claim their limits came following big wins, or multiple successful parlay plays. Books say they have also limited some players due to concerns over problem gambling.

Sports Books Say They Limit Only ‘Advantaged’ Players

The operators offered their side of this issue during that public meeting some 15 months ago.

“To effectively manage risk, we limit a small minority of patrons that we consider to be advantaged players who attempt to take advantage or find ways around our risk management framework. This group of limited patrons, many of whom self-identify as professional bettors, are loud in insisting that limiting patrons is a pervasive practice by operators. However, this is not accurate; it is actually the opposite,” BetMGM senior director of compliance Sarah Brennan told the MGC on Sept. 11, 2024.

She added that BetMGM limits only 1% of its Bay State customers. “And it is our ability to limit that small minority of advantaged players that allow us to continue to offer competitive lines, competitive odds, and a wide variety of markets for the 99 percent of non-advantaged players that play with us.”

Richard Schuetz, Billy Walters and Gadoon “Spanky” Kyrollos launched American Bettors' Voice. Their group advocates for players in the regulated betting ecosystem. They played a role in helping the MGC form its new regulations. The operators' snub from May 2024 caught their eye.

Sportsbooks Work To 'Manage Our Liability Exposure'

Other operators who spoke at that September 2024 meeting shared similar sentiments. They publicly admitted what many had believed: Sports betting operators limit players who are more likely to win. 

FanDuel’s vice president of product and new market compliance Cory Fox said his book works to “manage our liability exposure and avoid unsustainable losses” from players looking for errors. They also hope to play off different lines between books, he said. Or those who live bet while attending games in an effort to beat live line changes. 

“On an average day, FanDuel takes wagers on 2,700 unique events and over 37,000 different markets within those events. So in limited cases, over all of those markets, some users may have more information than we do. Some users may have a better model than we do,” he said. “We’re comfortable taking wagers for them, but we have to do it in a responsible manner that protects our company.”'

Public Comments Blasted Preceived Double-Standard 

The MGC received 59 comments from members of the public ahead of the ill-fated May 2024 roundtable. Many were similar to this one - "I believe the current environment where the books advertise and attract players with promotions to get them hooked and then only allow continued bets from players who lose a lot is not sustainable and is not good for the state of Massachusetts. To prey on certain gamblers for larger amounts and then limit other gamblers to $3 bets is just ridiculous." 

One patron cashed $13,500 on a $375 wager on any non-QB throwing a touchdown pass in Super Bowl 58. 

The +3500 ticket cashed when San Francisco WR Jauan Jennings hit Christian McCaffrey with a 21-yard TD pass in the second quarter.  This bettor, who asked to remain anonymous, had no limits on his FanDuel account prior to the Super Bowl. Since that hit, his wagers have been limited to $50.  

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