In the midst of all the hype surrounding March Madness, the NCAA has rolled out the Draw the Line campaign to help educate student athletes. The project seeks to educate these athletes about the possible risks associated with sports betting, including gambling related harm.
Recent research conducted by the NCAA reveals that 67% of college students aged 18 to 22 have engaged in sports wagering, which is troubling considering that the legal minimum age for betting in regulated states is 21. Draw the Line has in part grown out of NCAA concerns about the lack of safeguards for student-athletes’ well-being and the integrity of competitions in certain states.
In response, the NCAA began urging states to revise their sports betting laws last autumn, emphasizing the importance of protecting student-athletes from potential harassment or coercion, mitigating the adverse effects of problem gambling, and upholding competition integrity.
The Draw the Line campaign will be active across various social media platforms, aiming to raise awareness about the risks associated with sports betting. Additionally, NCAA member schools and conferences will receive access to a toolkit and supplementary resources.
This new campaign represents the NCAA’s ongoing efforts to tackle issues related to sports betting. In a similar vein, the NCAA launched its inaugural sports wagering e-learning module in October of last year, designed to educate student-athletes about the risks associated with gambling.