A recent investigation by The Athletic, a publication of The New York Times, examined allegations involving ESPN NFL Draft analyst Matt Miller. The report raised questions about fantasy football leagues he promoted as benefiting charity, unpaid league winners, and the lack of documentation supporting claimed charitable donations.

Nine participants said “league members received money they were owed only after badgering him directly, including threatening to expose him publicly or report him to his employer, and even then, some received only partial winnings,” according to The Athletic, which also reported that “the public outcry prompted an investigation by the Missouri Attorney General’s Office, which has received more than two dozen complaints.”

NBC Sports published a summary describing the investigation.

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Transparency Matters When Charity Is Used to Solicit Donations

Among the concerns discussed in The Athletic‘s reporting was Miller’s use of personal payment accounts to collect funds for fantasy football leagues that participants were told would benefit charitable causes. CharityWatch CEO Laurie Styron was interviewed by The Athletic about the transparency and accountability issues raised by the allegations.

According to the article, multiple participants said they never received proof that donations were distributed to charities. Styron explained why that lack of transparency matters to donors, telling The Athletic:

“The mere fact that it’s so unclear is problematic in and of itself. If people were basing their decision of whether or not to participate on the fact that [Miller] asserted that the money was going to charity, then [he] may have misled them about how their money would be used. Whether or not the letter of the law was being followed, that’s definitely unethical.”

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