MGM Springfield Fined $25,000 Over Northeastern Baseball Market

MGM Springfield has received a $25,000 fine after Massachusetts regulators found that a banned college baseball market briefly appeared at the casino sportsbook. No bets were accepted, but regulators still treated the error as another college sports betting breach.

Good To Know

• MGM Springfield listed a Northeastern men baseball game for around two hours.
• Massachusetts bans bets on in state college teams unless they play in national tournaments.
• The casino was already fined in 2023 and 2024 for similar college betting issues.

Massachusetts Regulators Fine MGM Springfield Again

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission approved the penalty at a meeting earlier in July. Enforcement counsel Diandra Franks said MGM cooperated with investigators and agreed with the recommended $25,000 fine.

The prohibited market involved Northeastern against Campbell University on April 5, 2025, in North Carolina. Northeastern won 8 to 1 behind starter Aiven Cabral, a Lynn native and Atlanta Braves draft pick.

A gaming agent found the market after it had been available for about two hours. Franks said the casino did not accept any wagers on the game.

Massachusetts law blocks betting on college teams based in the state, except when those teams compete in national tournaments. The rule has created repeated compliance problems for sportsbooks and casino partners because many college events sit inside wider national betting menus.

College Betting Errors Keep Drawing Fines

MGM Springfield has faced college betting penalties before. In 2024, the casino paid $47,500 after accepting bets on 2023 college basketball games involving Northeastern and the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

One year earlier, regulators fined the casino $20,000 after wagers were offered on two Harvard men basketball games. In that case, regulators said BetMGM, the casino vendor, had wrongly listed Harvard as being in Connecticut.

Fanatics also drew a Massachusetts fine in November for taking wagers on Boston College football against Michigan State in 2024. The sportsbook accepted 83 bets worth $3,325 after an employee wrongly disabled limits on the game. Regulators fined Fanatics $20,000.

Commissioner Eileen O’Brien said at the Fanatics meeting that the fine did not go far enough.

“I’m not satisfied with the fine,” O’Brien said, pointing to repeat problems. “I think only going up $5,000 each time they do this is not much of a deterrent on the operator. Hearing that someone who made a mistake loses their job is …[putting] the risk on the employee and not the company.”

“Three times in a couple of years with a smack on the wrist, I think there needs to be more done to make sure this doesn’t continue,” she added.

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