Bill Simmons’ stunning proxy betting total revealed as potential sanctions loom after investigation

Bill Simmons isn’t out of the woods just yet.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission set aside time during its meeting Thursday to discuss the proxy-betting controversy involving The Ringer founder and his daughter’s boyfriend, Hank.

According to a memorandum released by the MGC, Hank placed 22 bets totaling $21,800 in August on behalf of Simmons.

The writer-turned-podcaster-turned-media mogul, formerly known as “The Sports Guy,” found himself in hot water when he admitted on his podcast that he gave his FanDuel Sportsbook login to Hank so that he could place bets on behalf of Simmons.

Simmons was in California, a state that does not allow sports betting, at the time the bets were placed. Hank was in Massachusetts, which legalized sports gambling in 2022.

Placing proxy bets is not allowed by both the gaming commission and the sportsbook.

“I let Hank log into my FanDuel as me,” Simmons said on his show in August. “I get the code to make sure it’s me to my phone. I give him the code. He logs in, and I have all this money that I had from last year because I actually hit a bunch of futures last year, and he’s putting in bets for me and honestly it was the closest I’ve ever felt to Hank. It’s a real bonding moment for us.”

According to a report by Robert Linnehan, a regulatory reporter for Sportradar, the commission is considering all options, including taking action against FanDuel and/or Simmons and his associate.

“The IEB (Investigatory Enforcement Bureau) hasn’t foreclosed any kind of condition here going forward. Obviously, we’ll be digging in on all facets of this and making determinations as the facts guide us. We’ve conducted a preliminary review and understand the facts as we have them at this point,” Zachary Mercer, a member of the IEB, said during the meeting, per Linnehan.

Per Simmons, FanDuel eventually voided the bets and “actioned” his account as a response to his breaching of the rules.

“I talked about how I got my daughter’s boyfriend to place some bets for me in Massachusetts, because I was in L.A.,” Simmons said on his podcast in September. “Did not know about the proxy rules. Yeah, there’s some real rules with this stuff. … I learned my lesson. Apparently, proxy betting, not allowed. I actually thought it was, but that’s fine.”

FanDuel and The Ringer entered a multi-million-dollar advertising and content partnership in 2021, when the gaming giant became the exclusive sportsbook and fantasy partner across all of the company’s podcast, digital and social assets.

As for next steps, FanDuel will appear before the MGC for an adjudicatory hearing to discuss the Simmons incident, as well as proxy betting in general.