2025 Sports Gambling Scandals Rock NBA and MLB, FBI Investigates High-Profile Figures
NEW YORK, NY — The year 2025 will be remembered as a tumultuous chapter in the history of sports gambling, marked by a series of high-profile scandals that engulfed both professional and collegiate athletics. The FBI led investigations that exposed alleged corruption involving NBA coaches and players, as well as MLB pitchers accused of manipulating game outcomes to benefit illicit betting operations.
Sports gambling has become increasingly mainstream in recent years, but with its rise, the boundaries of integrity in sports have been tested repeatedly. In 2023, the NFL suspended several players for violations of gambling policies, and college athletes at Iowa and Iowa State faced sanctions. Yet, 2025 saw the stakes escalate dramatically with more prominent figures under scrutiny.
One of the most significant cases involved three NBA figures — Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier III, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, and assistant coach Damon Jones — who were arrested in October on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. The trio is alleged to have ties to La Cosa Nostra, the notorious organized crime syndicate. Rozier, who had been under NBA investigation since February, reportedly agreed to take himself out of a 2023 game early due to a fabricated injury, enabling associates to place lucrative bets on his reduced playing time. This scheme allegedly involved wagers totaling approximately $200,000, none of which were disclosed to team officials or betting companies.
The FBI’s crackdown extended beyond basketball. In Major League Baseball, pitchers including Cleveland Guardians’ Emmanuel Clase faced accusations of intentionally fixing pitches to influence game outcomes. These allegations have prompted MLB to enhance its collaboration with federal authorities to safeguard the sport’s integrity. The FBI’s public corruption division has emphasized the importance of rooting out gambling-related misconduct to preserve fair competition.
Earlier in the year, the saga of Shohei Ohtani, the MLB star, captured headlines when millions of dollars were discovered to have been gambled away under his name. The FBI investigation revealed that Ohtani’s former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, had been embezzling funds to cover his own gambling debts, highlighting the complex financial vulnerabilities athletes face.
Another NBA player, Jontay Porter, was permanently banned in April after it was uncovered that he deliberately underperformed to escape mounting gambling debts, enabling his co-conspirators to profit from bets on his performance. This case underscored the deepening involvement of athletes in gambling schemes and the severe consequences of such actions.
As sports leagues grapple with these scandals, the NBA’s gambling policy and MLB’s gambling regulations have come under renewed scrutiny, with calls for stricter enforcement and transparency. Meanwhile, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) continues to monitor and discipline college athletes involved in gambling violations to protect the integrity of amateur sports.
These revelations have sent shockwaves through the sports world, prompting leagues, law enforcement, and regulatory bodies to intensify efforts to combat gambling-related corruption. As the FBI and other agencies continue their investigations, the hope remains that the lessons of 2025 will lead to stronger safeguards and a renewed commitment to fair play across all levels of sports.
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