MLS authorizes return to football of player suspended for placing sports bets

Sporting Kansas City’s Felipe Hernández has received permission from Major League Soccer (MLS) to return to the pitch after being penalized for violating the rules of integrity and standards of conduct of the North American football competition last year.

Earlier this year, a request was made for the athlete’s reinstatement to the league commissioner, Don Garber. “This is an opportunity for him. It’s a second chance. He has to be smart for it and I think he will be. We are giving him all the assistance he needs,” said Sporting Kansas City club sporting director Peter Vermes.

The manager added: “As a player, he needs to get back to the way he left us last year, because he was in great shape, playing his best football. So he has the preseason to work on that and try to get his place on the team like everyone else.”

It should be noted that Felipe Hernández was suspended at the end of the last football season, after an independent investigation showed that the athlete placed bets on two Major League Soccer games.

The investigative process began in July, after the player admitted to his club that he was concerned about his physical integrity due to debts acquired with betting. There are, however, no indications that Hernández has bet on games for his own team.

US sports betting market hits all-time high in 2021

Despite the MLS player’s inappropriate stance, the sports betting market is booming in the United States. According to the American Gaming Association, the segment reached a historic milestone last year.

Although the December revenue has not been calculated until now, the annual revenue of the North American market reached US$ 48.34 billion by the end of November, breaking the annual industry record (2019) of US$ 43.65 billion. and 21.3% ahead of the same 11-month period in 2019.