A total of 28 US representatives have signed a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Department of Justice, calling for a crackdown on offshore operators, particularly Bovada, MyBookie and BetOnline.
The effort was led by Dina Titus and Guy Reschenthaler, co-chairs of the Congressional Gaming Caucus, and was signed by 26 other representatives.
The letter described offshore sportsbooks as “predatory operations” that “expose our constituents to financial and cyber vulnerabilities; do not have protocols to address money laundering, sports integrity, or age restrictions; and undermine states’ efforts to capture much needed tax revenue through legal sports betting channels”.
The letter called out three well-known offshore operators by name, saying that sites including Bovada, MyBookie and BetOnline “have developed sophisticated platforms that are nearly indistinguishable from those of legal providers”.
These sites – it also noted – are “frequently cited in reputable sports ..