Twice weekly, we’ll comb through as many articles, tweets and podcasts as we can find related to the world of sports betting and daily fantasy sports, and publish the good stuff here.
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Illinois recently shelved their bill that would regulate daily fantasy sports following allegations of illegal lobbying.
Democratic Rep. Michael Zalewski, one of the bill’s sponsors, told colleagues in a House committee Sunday that he would not put the proposal up to a vote before the Legislature adjourns its spring session Tuesday.
“This became a distraction to an unhealthy degree,” Zalewski said, without referencing the allegations that another lawmaker made last week.
Democratic Rep. Rita Mayfield had said she became privy to an email in which a lobbyist working for FanDuel and DraftKings suggested he could get support from members of the House Legislative Black Caucus in exchange for contributions to their foundations. Mayfield made the allegation during a hearing on the bill and said she didn’t feel comfortable voting on the proposal.
“The email basically alleged that in exchange for considerations, donations, that he could guarantee votes. That’s illegal,” she said.
The Brooklyn District Attorney’s office busted a $13.2 million sports betting operation controlled by a New York mafia family.
Reputed mobster Eugene “Boopsie” Castelle and a five-man crew allegedly took in wagers on pro and collegiate sporting events from around the world while wiring payments to an off-shore location.
The suspects were hit with a 37-count indictment Thursday before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun. They are charged with enterprise corruption, promoting gambling, money laundering and conspiracy.
Castelle, 56, of Staten Island, received extra cash in exchange for providing protection from rivals, authorities alleged.
Billy Walters was arrested by the FBI earlier this month for insider trading. While he’s been indicted several times in his life by different agencies, none of the indictments have led to a conviction. Bethany Barnes of the Las Vegas Review-Journal article wrote a feature on the popular sports bettor.
Walters is a hard man to dislike. His Southern charm and “aw shucks” attitude will “dazzle you to death,” Young said.
“I’ve known a lot of people who have a history, or a rep, or past or the word ‘alleged’ is used with them quite frequently,” Young said. “Bill may have all those monikers, but I never had a problem with him. I doubt Bill is the worst ‘alleged’ I’ve ever met in this town.”
The South Point sportsbook released college football team win totals for every FBS team last weekend.
Clemson and Boise State are the only two teams at 10.5, with Alabama, Michigan, Oklahoma and LSU coming in at 10. The Golden Nugget set Ohio State at 8.5 and Alabama at 9.5 last week, drawing some scrutiny from the college football world.
The value of Bitcoin moved back above $500 this weekend and its highest price since August 2014.
Some market participants believe Friday’s spike was caused by the devaluation of Chinese yuan, pointing out that bitcoin prices had already reached $500 on two of China’s largest bitcoin exchanges, OKCoin and Huobi. Trades involving Chinese yuan are believed to account for about 95 percent of the current bitcoin trading volume this year, according to a CoinDesk research.