, a wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons, placed several multi-legs parlay bets on his team through the Hard Rock Casino app, totaling $1,500.A few days later, Ridley, who was on a non-football related illness list, tried to place another bet and his activity was flagged by Hard Rock and Genius Sports, the U.K.-based tech platform that provides play-by-play statistics and data to sports betting and media companies for the NFL, NBA, NCAA, FIFA, EPL, and dozens of other leagues.
“The process worked,” says Brian McCarthy, a spokesman for the NFL, explaining that guarding against gambling by players and team personnel is one of the reasons the league contracted with Genius Sports in April 2021. “Integrity of the game is crucial to the health of the NFL.” Simon Martyn, the director of integrity at Genius Sports, says that even though his division is not a major revenue-driver for the company—that’s the data and statistics division—it is a foundational service that prevents entire sports leagues from crumbling.