PEMBROKE, N.C. — UNC Pembroke is one of 13 schools to benefit from the state’s new sports betting law that goes into effect in 2024.
This law legalizes horse racing and betting on sports, including professional, collegiate, and amateur sports, in North Carolina. The North Carolina Lottery Commission is still putting the final steps in place to introduce sports betting in the state.
UNC Pembroke Athletic Director Dick Christie is a former Wingate University golfer who is passionate about the impact sports betting has on North Carolina schools, especially smaller schools.
The legalization of sports betting in North Carolina will give UNC schools a $300,000 allocation in the spring. He said this funding will greatly help small schools like UNC Pembroke.
“Local school athletics are being significantly impacted not only by enrollment numbers, but also by the changing landscape of higher education. What we had done would not have been really sustainable,” Christie said.
After the annual allocation to schools, the state will divide 20% of the remaining tax revenue from gaming equally among schools each year.
“This is a big change for small town athletics stadiums. It will make a huge difference in how they stabilize operating budgets, how they structure health and safety requirements, and their ability to impact the local economy.” “We bring it to life,” Christie said.
One project Christie is proud of is the women’s golf locker room on campus. As a former golf player, he knows how important on-campus practice is. This putting ground was just a dream for him 10 years ago. Christie hopes the revenue from sports betting will help make more of those dreams a reality.
“We’re raising money so we don’t have to use that money for basic operations. We can actually use it for facilities and funds and things that will further enhance the student-athlete experience.” Christie said.
For UNC Pembroke, the investment in athletics has proven to be a success. The school’s teams won a record seven conference titles during the 2022-23 season. In the athletic department, they also won the Conference Carolinas Joby Horn All-Sports Trophy for the first time since the 1991-92 season.
Academically, UNC Pembroke athletics performed well in 2022-2023, with 10 students posting a grade point average of 3.0 or higher and a total student-athlete GPA of 2.896, the highest in the university’s 84-year history. It was the fourth highest. School sports day.
While there are many benefits for universities, this new era of sports betting can also come with risks, Christie said.
“We’ve had to be wary of everything surrounding it, the old points-cutting scandals and things like that. So it gives us a new touchpoint to educate with our student-athletes. .Even if they are legalized in the state, they need to be completely segregated,” Christie said.