What Is Proxy Betting? How It Works, Legal Risks and Sportsbook Rules

Not every arrangement works the same way. An unpaid bet for a friend, paid messenger betting, using another person's online account and using your own account for somebody else's wagers can raise different legal and sportsbook-rule issues.

For this guide, I focus on the United States and the United Kingdom. I chose the US because sports betting is regulated mainly at the state level, which lets me compare different approaches to proxy betting within one country. The United Kingdom provides a different model: a mature national betting market with central regulation and detailed account rules from major licensed sportsbooks.

I checked proxy-betting rules across every US jurisdiction with a legal sports betting market and reviewed the terms of major sportsbooks in both markets.

This guide is for general information and is not legal advice.

Common Arrangements Often Called Proxy Betting

The term proxy betting is used for several practices that are not exactly the same.

Tennessee's sports betting regulator, for example, defines proxy betting as one person betting on behalf of another.

I separate the most common arrangements like this:

There can also be narrow approved exceptions. Some sportsbooks have formal procedures that allow assistance for customers with certain disabilities. I would not treat these arrangements as ordinary proxy betting.

Retail and online betting create different issues. At a betting shop, proxy betting may involve passing money and instructions to another person. Online sportsbooks link each wager to a registered account and may check identity, age, payment details, device information and location.

Password sharing is therefore not the only potential problem. Using your own account to place another person's bets can also conflict with rules that require wagers to be made for your own benefit.

Is Proxy Betting Legal?

There is no single legal answer that applies to every form of proxy betting.

The result depends on the jurisdiction and the type of arrangement. Some rules directly prohibit betting on behalf of another person. Others cover only specific cases, such as paid messenger betting, wagering for a prohibited person or using another person's account.

Proxy Betting Rules in US States With Legal Sports Betting

I use five classifications in the table:

• Explicit rule against proxy betting – a law or regulation directly prohibits proxy or agent wagering, or requires sportsbooks to prevent it.
• Limited restriction – the rule applies only to certain forms, such as paid messenger betting or wagering for a prohibited person.
• Official sportsbook restriction – the state's official betting system restricts the practice through sportsbook or account rules rather than a separate broad proxy-betting law.
• Varies by tribal sportsbook – there is no single statewide commercial rule that applies to every tribal sportsbook.
• No explicit statewide rule found – I could not verify a current broad proxy-specific statewide rule. This does not mean proxy betting is allowed.

The table shows why I do not use a simple legal-or-illegal classification. Nevada is the clearest example. Under NRS 465.094, certain wagers placed without compensation for another person's benefit can fall within an exception. Nevada Gaming Regulation 22 treats compensated messenger betting separately.

The consequences can also go beyond sportsbook account action. Kansas and South Dakota attach criminal penalties to certain forms of proxy wagering, while Tennessee expressly states that betting on behalf of another person is illegal.

New Jersey also shows that proxy-betting rules are enforced against operators. In February 2022, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement imposed a $150,000 civil penalty on DraftKings after finding that the operator had negligently allowed a patron to engage in proxy wagering. The enforcement summary and official order provide the details.

Proxy Betting in the UK

There is no general rule in the UK that prohibits every case of one person placing a bet for another. The legal position changes when the arrangement becomes a service or involves other regulated activity.

Under Section 13 of the Gambling Act 2005, a person who provides a service designed to facilitate bets between other people can be treated as a betting intermediary. The UK Gambling Commission explains that this can include a tipster who places bets for third parties in return for payment or commission. The appropriate operating licence is required for this type of business.

Online accounts are also subject to regulatory controls. UK-licensed remote operators must identify their customers, and the Gambling Commission warns against giving personal details to third parties for gambling accounts, particularly where this could bypass age checks, self-exclusion or other restrictions.

Sportsbooks can then impose additional account rules. I compare the terms of four major British operators below.

Sportsbook Rules Add a Second Layer

Gambling rules are only one part of the picture. Sportsbooks also set their own account rules. Even where I found no broad legal ban on every form of proxy betting, an operator may still require the registered customer to place only their own bets.

Proxy betting can affect several controls used by sportsbooks:

How US Sportsbooks Treat Betting for Someone Else

I checked official material from four major US sportsbooks.

Because operator terms can differ by state, the source checked matters.

The wording differs between operators. DraftKings directly covers wagers placed on behalf of another person, while FanDuel also describes proxy betting as activity it monitors.

I therefore checked terms for broader phrases such as personal use, third-party benefit and acting on behalf of another person, not only the word proxy.

Some operators also have narrow approved exceptions. Caesars' Massachusetts rules, for example, describe a formal process for assistance for certain customers with disabilities. The bettor must be present and the procedure must be approved. I would not treat this as ordinary proxy betting.

How Great Britain Sportsbooks Treat Betting for Someone Else

I checked four large sports betting sites in the UK.

William Hill also shows that proxy-betting rules can apply without password sharing, because its terms cover certain third-party funds used to bypass account restrictions.

What Can Happen If Proxy Betting Is Detected?

There is no universal penalty. The response depends on the sportsbook's terms, the jurisdiction and what the operator believes happened.

DraftKings, William Hill and bet365 publish terms allowing some of these actions, although the exact conditions differ.

I would not assume that a sportsbook will automatically confiscate all winnings after suspected proxy betting. The outcome depends on the operator's terms and the facts of the case.

Proxy Betting and Self-Exclusion

Proxy betting can be used to bypass self-exclusion by hiding the excluded bettor behind another person.

There is evidence that this happens in real betting environments. A 2025 study of current and former UK betting-shop employees described situations where excluded customers could remain outside a shop and pass bets to another person going inside.

The study was qualitative and focused on betting shops, so I would not use it to estimate how common online proxy betting is. It does show a real way in which another person can be used to bypass an exclusion.

Broader research on self-exclusion systems has also identified breaches and circumvention as problems that regulators and operators need to address.

I would not treat betting through another person as an alternative to self-exclusion. It removes part of the protection that self-exclusion is designed to provide.