The Gaming Commission of Ontario made a huge decision on Thursday about the legality of UFC gambling that could have a huge impact on the future of gambling on the promotion across the world.
ESPN’s David Purdum reported on Thursday that The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) notified sportsbooks on Thursday that they must stop offering and accepting wagers on UFC events.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) notified sportsbooks today that they must stop offering and accepting wagers on Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) events "due to concerns about non-compliance with AGCO’s betting integrity requirements."
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) December 1, 2022
This decision was made “due to concerns about non-compliance with AGCO’s betting integrity requirements”.
While some may see this as an unexpected decision, this decision largely came down due to the UFC’s investigation into a potential fight fixing involving former UFC fighter and current coach James Krause.
The investigation in question stemmed from a fight back at UFC Vegas 64 in November between Darrick Minner and Shayilan Nuerdanbieke.
Krause was coaching Minner, and before the fight, there was a very suspicious movement in the betting line.
The betting line on Minner plummeted from a +190 underdog to a +330 underdog in the span of a couple of hours. Minner was seemingly dealing with a bad knee injury coming into the fight and expectedly lost via TKO in the first round.
1️⃣:0️⃣7️⃣ is all it took!
Shayilan Nuerdanbieke gets the finish in round 1 #UFCVegas64 pic.twitter.com/eXqVGELmJj
— UFC (@ufc) November 6, 2022
Krause has made it known that he gambles on UFC fights, previously saying on the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani that he makes more from betting than he does from coaching.
James Krause says he makes more on gambling on MMA than anything else.#TheMMAHour pic.twitter.com/jfW4qJar6E
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) August 1, 2022
The AGCO released a statement following their decision to not accept bets from the promotion any longer, saying that it is their job to protect the betting public.
“This is not a decision we take lightly, knowing the popularity of UFC events in Ontario’s sports books. However, the risks of insider betting on event and wagering integrity should be highly concerning to all. It certainly is to us. We will continue to work with gaming operators, the OLG, iGaming Ontario and UFC to ensure that wagering on UFC events meets the AGCO’s standards.”
Statement from Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario on banning betting on UFC: pic.twitter.com/oXgltrcN3D
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) December 1, 2022
