OXON HILL, Md. (AP) — The NCAA sent a letter Wednesday asking federal regulators to suspend prediction markets, which are trading sites that allow users to essentially bet on outcomes of games, for college sports.
NCAA President Charlie Baker sent the letter to the chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, urging him to put a halt to the offerings “until a more robust system with appropriate safeguards is in place.”
During his speech to the NCAA's annual convention, Baker referenced one site that had been planning to start taking bets on where players might transfer "until we called them out and they backed down."
The platforms are legal because they're classified as financial trading platforms, not gambling websites.
The NCAA has been wrestling with gambling since a Supreme Court ruling lifted the nationwide ban on sports betting in 2018. In November, the NCAA passed, then quickly rescinded, a rule that would have allowed staff and athletes to bet on professional games.
The about-face came in the aftermath of the arrests of an NBA player and coach in a takedown of two sprawling gambling operations.
Baker's letter listed a number of safeguards missing from prediction markets, including bans on prop betting — a form of wagering in which gamblers can bet on individual outcomes in games.
In recent months, the NCAA has ruled more than a dozen basketball players ineligible for manipulating their performance to influence results involving both point spreads and prop bets.
AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports
FILE - NCAA President Charlie Baker speaks during the Division I Business Session at the annual NCAA convention, Jan. 15, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, File)
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild have clinched a spot in the NHL playoffs, giving them another chance to advance in the postseason for the first time since 2015.
The Wild earned a bid 75 games in after clinching last year in the 82nd and final game of the regular season. They beat league-worst Vancouver 5-2 on Thursday night to get in.
Minnesota was eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round last year, ending coach John Hynes’ debut season.
The Wild failed to advance in seven postseason appearances between 2016 and 2023. Their deepest run in the playoffs was a trip to the conference finals in 2003 in the franchise’s third year of existence.
The Minnesota North Stars lost in the 1981 and 1991 Stanley Cup Final. They relocated to Dallas in 1993, becoming the Stars, and hoisted the Cup in 1999.
The Wild proved their commitment to contending this season by signing Kirill Kaprizov to an eight-year, $136 million contract extension — the richest deal in league history. The star winger has a team-high 83 points.
Goaltender Filip Gustavsson has won twice as many games as he’s lost while giving up a little more than 2 1/2 goals per game.
Minnesota has the league’s longest active streak of consecutive winning seasons at 14.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL
Minnesota Wild left wing Matt Boldy (12) shoots the puck against the Vancouver Canucks during the third period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, April 2, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)
Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson defends his net against the Vancouver Canucks during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, April 2, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)
Minnesota Wild right wing Ryan Hartman celebrates after his goal against the Vancouver Canucks during the third period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, April 2, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)
