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Fanatics Sportsbook says bettors who threaten or harass athletes, coaches, or officials could lose access to the platform under a new monitoring program, and the policy lands in a state where that kind of conduct is already addressed in law.
The operator announced the ProhiBet Bad Actor Program with IC360 and Signify Group. Fanatics said users found engaging in abusive, threatening, defamatory, or harassing conduct may be suspended or permanently terminated.
West Virginia is part of the story because state law already gives the West Virginia Lottery Commission authority to ban individuals in certain cases, including threats to safety or a pattern of harassing conduct, according to the source material.
Fanatics says it is the first operator using the program
Fanatics said the technology will automatically review public-facing activity on X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. Athletes, coaches, and teams can also submit direct-message abuse for consideration.
The company said it is the first legal sports betting operator to use the new program. Fanatics also said information and evidence may be shared with sports leagues and teams when athletes are targeted.
Fanatics Betting and Gaming CEO Matt King called the effort a way to hold bettors accountable for threats against players, coaches, and officials. He also urged other operators to join the initiative.
Where West Virginia fits
This is not a West Virginia-specific operator change, but the source directly ties the issue to state-level enforcement tools already on the books.
According to the source, four states currently have laws or rules allowing sports betting bans for harassment-related conduct. West Virginia is one of them, alongside Wyoming and Ohio, while Louisiana has passed a similar law that takes effect Aug. 1.
The source says West Virginia law allows the West Virginia Lottery Commission to ban individuals for certain prior violations, threats to safety, or a pattern of harassing conduct. That law was signed in March 2024 and took effect in June 2024.
Wyoming amended its regulations in December 2024 to define harassment and allow placement on an involuntary exclusion list. Ohio included a similar provision in its 2024-2025 fiscal year budget for harassment or threats against student-athletes.
What players should watch next
The immediate change reported here is at Fanatics, not from West Virginia regulators. The open questions are practical ones: how Fanatics will apply the policy, whether any bettors will actually be banned or restricted, and whether other sportsbooks follow with similar enforcement programs.
In West Virginia, the broader takeaway is that operator-level monitoring and state-level exclusion authority are now moving in the same direction on harassment and threats tied to sports betting. Anyone using a legal sportsbook should expect abusive conduct toward sports figures to draw closer scrutiny.
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Source: As reported by sportsbettingdime.com.
