The Southeastern Conference announced Wednesday that the collegiate powerhouse conference is adding a sports betting training video to its annual mandatory education.
Key Takeaways
- The SEC’s required video will highlight sports betting risks, policies, and reporting.
- The league commissioner cited prediction markets among his reasons for the initiative.
- The SEC included results from a national survey on young-adult wagering.
The announcement accompanied a report that states approximately $12 billion was wagered through state-licensed sportsbooks and federally regulated prediction markets on at least one SEC team during the 2025-2026 season.
“The Southeastern Conference remains committed to supporting its member institutions and student-athletes through proactive education, monitoring, and resources that promote integrity and protect the student-athlete experience,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement.
“The rise in sports gambling, including some recent well-documented incidents among college and professional athletics, as well as developments around prediction markets, makes this a high-priority initiative for the Southeastern Conference.”
Schools will be required to present a video that provides education on sports wagering and prediction market risks, the conference’s and NCAA’s gambling policies, and a guide to reporting integrity concerns as part of the league’s compliance programming before this year’s competitions.
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Continuing integrity programs
The video is a continuation of the SEC’s integrity programs created to combat sports betting issues and concerns. Earlier this year, the league required every school to hang sports betting information posters in locker rooms and launched a gambling tip hotline to anonymously report suspicious activity.
The recording also builds upon the SEC’s 2023 partnership with integrity firm IC 360, which monitors prohibited sports betting, and expands on the conference’s injury availability policy for football, baseball, and men’s and women’s basketball, instituted in 2024.
As part of the reasoning for its proactive sports betting approach, the SEC cited a recent national survey that showed 58% of 18-to-22-year-olds and 67% of students living on college campuses have placed at least one bet on sports, while 31% of adults under 30 have engaged in betting.
Don’t bet on it
The NCAA prohibits wagers on collegiate and professional sports. Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby was ruled ineligible by the governing body for placing bets, including on teams he played for at other schools. His request to be reinstated was denied Tuesday, and Texas Tech is appealing the decision.
The NCAA attempted to change its gambling policy last year to allow athletes to bet on pro sports only, but the proposal fell apart after Sankey and college coaches opposed the plan.
Of the 39 legal U.S. sports betting states, online and/or retail sportsbooks are operating in seven jurisdictions that are home to SEC teams. Missouri was the latest to launch wagering in December 2025. Prediction market sites are available in every SEC state; the minimum age is 18 to trade contracts, including on college football, basketball, and baseball, at Kalshi and Polymarket.
