The troubled relationship between team sports and illegal gambling in the United States dates back more than a century, culminating in the game-fixing scandal by eight Chicago White Sox players in the 1919 World Series and the current FBI investigation into prop betting and poker game fixing involving various NBA personalities. As the following partial timeline shows, no major professional sport appears to be untouched by gambling scandals.
nba
1950: Sol Levy, NBA referee from 1948–51, faced seven criminal counts related to fixing games during the 1950–51 season, primarily by calling fouls to influence scoring. As The New York Times reported, he received a three-year sentence in New York in 1953, but won an appeal in 1954 that led to his release.
1951: The gambling scandal at the City College of New York was not NBA-specific, but it did involve players who were playing in the NBA at the time. Players and former players from seven colleges were arrested on point-shaving charges involving college basketball games from 1947–1950. Among those accused were former University of Kentucky players Alex Groza and Ralph Beard, who were playing for the NBA’s Indianapolis Olympians at the time and were later banned after admitting to taking bribes.
Former Kentucky teammate Dale Barnstable, who also admitted taking bribes along with Groza and Beard, was selected in the seventh round by the Boston Celtics in the 1950 NBA draft, but he decided not to play professional basketball at that time. They were later banned.
Other college players arrested in the 1951 scandal included Bradley University’s Gene Melchiorre, who was the No. 1 pick by the Baltimore Bullets in the 1951 NBA draft, but was banned and never played an NBA game.
Other NBA draftees who were involved in the scandal but never played in the NBA: Bill Mann (Bradley, 1951 NBA third-round pick), Irvin Dembrot (CCNY, seventh pick in the 1950 NBA draft). Norm Mager (CCNY, 1950 fifth-round pick) was drafted in 1950 and spent one season with the Baltimore Bullets.
1954: Jack Molinas was a former Columbia University player who was selected in the first round of the 1953 NBA draft by the Fort Wayne Pistons. Molinas was found betting on Pistons games during his rookie season of 1953–54 and was banned after admitting to betting. In 1961, Molinas was found guilty of bribing players to score points in college games between 1959 and 1961 and sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison.
Among those affected by that scandal was Doug Moe, who later became an ABA and NBA coach. As bribe money was flowing among the conspirators, Moe rejected an offer and also refused to play a game while playing at the University of North Carolina. Moe was a second-round draft pick in the 1961 NBA draft and played five seasons in the ABA before joining the coaching ranks.
Hall of Famer Connie Hawkins was also banned despite declaring his innocence after being implicated in the 1961 Molinas scandal. NBA commissioner at the time Walter Kennedy banned Hawkins, even though Molinas and other co-conspirators said Hawkins had “no involvement in or knowledge of game fixing.” Hawking’s ban was eventually lifted. His playing career spanned nine seasons in the ABA and NBA and he was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992.
1985-86: John “Hot Rod” Williams, who played 13 NBA seasons before playing in the NBA, was embroiled in two trials related to betting scandals when he played at Tulane. The first trial ended in a mistrial and the second resulted in Williams’ acquittal.
2007: The FBI contacted the NBA in 2007 as it investigated allegations that veteran referee Tim Donaghy was betting on games he was officiating. Donaghy resigned in July 2007 and ultimately pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and disseminating betting information.
2024: Jonte Porter, most recently a two-way player under contract with the Toronto Raptors, was banned from the NBA after a league investigation found that he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors and faked poor performance in one or more games for betting purposes. The investigation found that he had also bet on NBA games. Although he did not play in those games, it is still a violation of league rules.
2025: An extensive and ongoing FBI investigation identified a current and former NBA player and a coach in alleged, fixed-game betting scams, as well as alleged involvement in poker games by Mafia figures.
nfl
1946: In the NFL Championship game against the Chicago Bears, New York Giants quarterback Frank Filchock and fullback Merle Haps were implicated in an alleged bribery scheme to throw the game. The Bears won 24–14. Heaps was suspended for not reporting the bribe offer before the game. Philchock was allowed to play that day and was later suspended. Haps never played in the NFL again. Philchock played one more NFL season in 1950.
1963: The NFL suspended Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras and Green Bay Packers halfback Paul Hornung for one year for violating the league gambling policy. Both players returned to the league the following year.
1983: Former Ohio State All-America quarterback Art Schleicher was suspended for one year for violating the NFL gambling policy while playing with the Baltimore Colts. The NFL reinstated him in 1984, and Schleicher played his final season in 1985. Schleicher was arrested in 1987 on gambling racketeering charges and sentenced to prison in 2012 on gambling charges.
2019: While on injured reserve, Arizona Cardinals cornerback Josh Shaw was suspended for gambling on NFL games. However, despite being reinstated in 2021, Shaw never played in the league again.
2022: Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended for betting on NFL games during the 2021 season. Ridley, who was reinstated in 2023, currently plays for the Tennessee Titans.
2022: New York Jets wide receivers coach Miles Austin was suspended for gambling on non-NFL games. The current status of the former All-Pro with a 10-year NFL career is unclear.
2023: Detroit Lions wide receivers Jamison Williams, Quintez Cephus, Stanley Berryhill and safety C.J. Moore and Washington Commanders defensive end Shaka Toney were suspended for violating the league’s gambling policy. Williams and Berryhill were suspended for six games. Cephus, Moore and Toney were suspended indefinitely. Williams returned to the Lions and is currently on the roster. Berryhill did not return and have yet to play in the league again. Cephus, Moore and Toney were reinstated in April 2024, but have not played in the league since the 2022 regular season.
Indianapolis Colts cornerback Isaiah Rodgers and defensive end Rashod Berry, and free agent defensive end Demetrius Taylor were suspended indefinitely until at least 2023 for betting on NFL games. Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Nicolas Petit-Frere was issued a six-game suspension for betting on non-NFL games. Rodgers, Berry and Taylor were reinstated in April 2024. Rodgers is the only player of these three who is still in the league and currently plays for Minnesota.
Broncos defensive end Eyoma Uwazurike was suspended for betting on NFL games through the 2022 season. He was reinstated in August 2024 and currently plays for Denver.
Former Jaguar employee Amit Patel pleaded guilty to stealing $22 million from Jaguar and was sentenced to six and a half years in prison in March 2024. His lawyer said that Patel used the money to pay off gambling debts. Patel is currently facing grand theft charges in Florida, which could lead to increased prison time if convicted.
mlb
1920: Shoeless Joe Jackson and seven associates implicated in the “Black Sox” scandal of 1919 were given a lifetime suspension by Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis. MLB effectively exonerated him this year and said dead players can no longer be banned.
1947: Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher was suspended for the season for his association with gamblers.
1970: Pitcher Denny McLain was suspended in 1967 for alleged betting activities by then-MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn for the 1970 season. McLain won 31 games for the Detroit Tigers in 1968 and returned to the club in July 1970.
1989: Pete Rose, baseball’s all-time hits leader and then manager of the Cincinnati Reds, was accused by Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti was banned for life. Baseball investigator John Dowd concluded that Rose had bet $2,000 on his own team while he was manager. The ban was lifted following Rose’s death this year, making him eligible for the Hall of Fame.
2024: Tucupita Marcano of the San Diego Padres was placed on the permanent ineligible list for violating MLB’s sports betting policies. Marcano allegedly placed 387 baseball bets, including 231 MLB-related bets, through a legal sportsbook. 25 of the MLB bets included Pittsburgh Pirates games while he was a member of the organization.
MLB also announced that Oakland A’s pitcher Michael Kelly and three minor leaguers received one-year suspensions for gambling violations. Kelly returned to the A’s in June.
February 2025: Former MLB umpire Pat Hoberg was fired in May 2024 for violating the league’s gambling rules, lost his appeal and his dismissal was upheld. According to MLB.com, Hoberg has denied betting on baseball and the MLB investigation of his conduct found no evidence that he placed bets on baseball or that he took any action to manipulate the results of any games. But by sharing legal sports betting accounts with a professional poker player and friend who bet on baseball and hindering the MLB investigation by deleting messages with the friend, Hoberg was ruled by MLB to have failed to maintain the integrity of the game.
July 2025: Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Luis Ortiz and reliever Emmanuel Clase were placed on non-disciplinary paid leave due to the ongoing MLB sports betting investigation into unusual prop betting interest in individual pitches by Ortiz in two Guardians games in June.
June 2025: Ippei Mizuhara, the disgraced former interpreter of Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani, entered a federal prison in Pennsylvania to begin a 57-month sentence for stealing nearly $17 million from Ohtani. Dodgers fire Mizuhara in March 2024 an espn investigation It was revealed that he sent lakhs of rupees in wire transfer from Ohtani’s account to an illegal bookmaker. He admitted that over a two-year period he placed approximately 19,000 bets with the bookmaker and accumulated a debt of more than $40 million.
nhl
1946: Toronto Maple Leafs star defenseman Walter “Babe” Pratt was suspended for nine games for betting on hockey games. The decision included a statement from the NHL Board of Governors that players found to have any connection to betting or gamblers in all future betting scandals would be suspended for life. Pratt played 12 seasons in the NHL and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966.
1948: Billy Taylor of the New York Rangers was banned for life and Don Gallinger of the Boston Bruins was suspended indefinitely for gambling charges. Neither played in the league again, despite being reinstated by the NHL Board of Governors in 1970.
2006: Rick Tocchet was placed on leave as assistant coach of the Phoenix Coyotes amid allegations that Tocchet financed a nationwide gambling ring. In May 2007, Tocquet, who played 18 seasons in the NHL, pleaded guilty to running a sports gambling ring. Tocquet said he never bet on professional hockey. He was sentenced to two years’ probation. Tocquet returned to the Coyotes bench in February 2008.
2023: Shane Pinto of the Ottawa Senators was suspended for 41 games for sports betting-related activities. However, the league found no evidence that Pinto had bet on NHL games. Pinto still plays for Ottawa.
ESPN staff researcher John Mastroberardino compiled the information in this report.
