How Do Betting Eyes Affect Us as Refs?

[Lukkas]

Hi everyone,

Quick one from me. I'm involved in the sports betting space, mostly analysis and predictions, not heavy gambling, and I’ve noticed something over time: refs catch a lot of heat from bettors, especially when close calls swing a game.
I know as officials we’re trained to block out the noise, focus on the rules, and just do the job, but in real life, with betting growing rapidly, even through platforms like Betting Tips Africa, which show how invested people are across the continent, I sometimes wonder: do y’all ever feel that pressure? Like, knowing your call could spark a wave of backlash from people who lost money, especially online?
I’m not saying it should affect us, but I’d love to know, does that betting world ever cross into how you prepare or think during a game?

Appreciate any thoughts, not trying to start drama, just genuinely curious.

[ElvisLives]

It damned sure better not ever affect how we prepare fora game, approach a game, or officiate a game. EVER. And, if anyone that officiates any sport is also connected to any sort of betting / gambling environment, they need to give up one or the other. That is something that simply could never be rationalized or accepted.
I am proud of what I do, and we work too damned hard to have our reputations tarnished by even the faintest hint of partiality. Gamble or officiate. One or the other. Not both.

Robert Cameron
Lubbock, Texas

50-year football official (FBS, retired, and high school, current)
10-year baseball umpire (1978-1988, National Association minor league professional baseball, D1 NCAA, high school)

 

[Grant - AR]

In the heat of the game, something like this has never crossed my mind.  I'm so focused on the plays, the players, the coaches, etc. that I don't think about anything else.  Plus, I never paid any attention to betting lines or things like that.  I'm very ignorant of the betting arena so I couldn't tell you what a lot of that means anyway.