The NCAA is partnering with popular payments platform Venmo due to ongoing concerns about the impact of sports betting on student-athletes. The goal of the new agreement announced on Tuesday is to protect players from “unwanted interactions.”
Venmo is strengthening its app’s protections with methods such as rolling out a dedicated hotline to report any Venmo-related harassment. It will also provide a best practices guide, monitor the accounts of student-athletes to prevent “an influx of requests based on game performance,” and educate other app users on the possible outcomes of harassing athletes.
called on other payment platforms and social media sites to do the same
NCAA President Charlie Baker praised Venmo for taking action and called on other payment platforms and social media sites to do the same.
This new partnership comes off the back of a scandal earlier this month when screenshots of Venmo payments made by Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer labeled with betting-related descriptions like “sports gambling” and “UCLA vs USC” came to light.
The player has claimed that these were just inside jokes with a former teammate and he looks set to start in his team’s opener on Saturday against Illinois State. Student-athletes aren’t allowed to place bets on college or professional games.
