Politics and gambling don’t mix
UK election gambling scandal draws sporting parallels
Calls for politicians to face similar curbs on betting as sportspeople.
In +More: DC opens up, Thai casino claims, Google Play pause.
Polling suggests Missouri sports-betting vote hangs in the balance.
The UK’s FCA warns trading firms over gamification techniques.
Election betting debate
Good for the goose: The betting scandal engulfing UK politics has prompted calls for a review of rules that would place similar wagering curbs on party members as those on sports players. Up to 15 Tory party candidates and officials are currently under investigation by the Gambling Commission following suspect betting on the timing of the forthcoming general election.
The Commission said late Wednesday that the police had taken over several of the investigations.
Fishy Sunak: The debacle erupted when individuals close to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak were alleged to have placed bets on the date the election would be held, July 4, prompting an investigation from the UK gambling regulator.
Two Conservative election hopefuls have had party support withdrawn, while the party’s director of campaigning and chief data officer have been stood down.
Sunak’s bodyguard was also arrested and five other officers are being probed by the Met Police over similar allegations.
Everybody else is doing it, so why can’t we? Several senior political figures have since admitted to wagering on votes and said the practice is common. Scotland secretary Alister Jack claimed to have won more than $2,000 by betting on the timing of the election.
Jack, who is not seeking re-election, said he “did not place any bets on the date of the general election during May – the period under investigation by the Gambling Commission.” “I am very clear that I have never, on any occasion, broken any Gambling Commission rules,” Jack told the BBC.
A Labour candidate has been suspended after admitting he bet on himself to lose.
Like fudge and caramel they’re not the same: Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said a review should be carried out, adding that, while he had also previously wagered on the outcome of elections, “having a flutter” and using inside information to place bets were entirely different.
“I think lots of people in politics do this,” he said. “One reason why we need this review of gambling regulations is to get real clarity on what is allowed but what isn’t.”
“I’ve never placed a bet on myself in any election and I don’t think we should,” Davey added. “I think that’s one of the things that would go into this review that we’re calling for.”
Work and Pensions minister Mel Stride said MPs “shouldn’t do it,” backing a total ban.
Check yo self: In recent months, the issue of sports players gambling on their own games, and sometimes their own performances, has drawn widespread condemnation, negative headlines and resulted in some hefty punishments for those involved.
“If they were professional sports players, they’d be banned/suspended from their profession (like Ivan Toney at Brentford was),” said Scott Baxter, of Card Game Events, adding that no politician should be above the law.
Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali and Juventus’ Nicolò Fagioli have been sanctioned for their involvement in sports betting, while West Ham United star Lucas Paquetá is under investigation and faces a potentially career-ending ban should he be found guilty of spot fixing.
Some will seek forgiveness, others escape: Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said he was not in favor of a ban on politicians wagering, however, and suggested the matter was more related to Westminster culture.
“I don’t think this is about changing the rules on betting. I think the rules are clear enough, it’s about the behavior of politicians and it’s about the behavior of leaders when things come to light,” he told the BBC.
“I said if any of my candidates were being investigated by the Gambling Commission they’d be out of the door and their feet wouldn’t touch the ground, and that’s what you saw yesterday.”
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Bovada is reported to have complied with the Michigan Gaming Control Board’s request for it to end operations in the state, although the PlayMichigan story suggested users are still able to access the site. Bovada has also received cease-and-desist letters from Colorado and Connecticut, while the Massachusetts Gaming Commission is mulling a similar move.
Washington DC: The changes proposed to the mobile betting regime, which would open up the market to multiple operators, have been approved as part of the budget bill passed by the DC Council earlier this week.
The market is currently a monopoly that was recently handed over to FanDuel, which replaced GambetDC.
Thailand: Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said this week that the legalization of casinos could help the country’s authorities in their fight against illegal gambling dens. “We have to admit that underground gambling is a serious problem and should be solved by legalizing,” Thavisin told media last weekend.
His comments came a week after deputy finance minister Julapun Amornvivat said a report regarding a proposal to legalize casino business in the country would be put before the cabinet within the next month.
Daylight come and he wanna go home: Australian streaming service Kayo has fallen foul of the country’s gambling advertising rules for broadcasting during live events. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) said Kayo, which is provided by Hubbl, aired 16 different ads outside allotted times during 267 live sporting events.
Restrictions ban gambling adverts from being shown during live sport between 5am and 8.30pm. Hubbl blamed a technical error.
All change: A cross-party group of politicians in Northern Ireland has recommended major reform of the country’s gambling laws, following a two-year inquiry. The group has presented 57 recommendations for the Northern Ireland Executive, various departments and the UK government, noting that existing regulations are outdated and need to be refreshed to take in developments such as crypto.
Google pause: The search giant has paused its real-money gaming experiment within the Play Store citing a lack of a central authority to approve such apps in key jurisdictions, including India, Brazil and Mexico where it had opened up the channel in January.
The company said expanding support of real-money gaming apps in markets without a central licensing framework had “proven more difficult than expected.”
The move has been criticized by the All India Gaming Federation, which characterized the decision as “arbitrary” and “anti-competitive.”
Peru: Betsson has been granted iCasino and sports-betting licenses for its Betsafe and Betsson brands in the newly regulated market. The company said it also expects to gain approval for Inkabet, a locally licensed online betting and sports brand in Peru that it acquired in 2021.
Lithuania: Parliament has approved a 2 ppt hike in betting taxes, starting in 2025.
Bally’s has joined the Responsible Online Gaming Association as a founding member alongside bet365, Entain and MGM Resorts’ BetMGM, DraftKings, Fanatics, Flutter’s FanDuel, Hard Rock Digital and Penn Entertainment. Meanwhile, the Coalition for Fantasy Sports has added Dabble and Betr to its ranks.
The Kindbridge Research Institute has announced the establishment of the Military Gambling Awareness Committee, an initiative dedicated to battling gambling-related harms within the military community.
What we’re reading
“This is really, for the industry, the most important issue there is right now.” Sports Business Journal on the betting tax debate in the US.
Murky as hell: The DraftKings John Doe plaintiff is “likely” the lawyer in the case. In SBC Americas.
Risk and Fraud Manager – Remote
Compliance Analyst – Malta
Missouri polling
Show me the way: Frustrated by a legislative morass, Missouri’s professional sports teams are backing a ballot initiative to legalize sports betting in the Show-Me State. The group behind the effort, Winning for Missouri Education, which comprises Missouri’s six professional sports teams, collected more than 300,000 signatures.
This virtually guarantees the initiative will go before the voters in November even though it has yet to be officially certified by the Missouri secretary of state.
The initiative would create up to 19 license holders, with Missouri’s 13 casinos and six professional sports teams allowed to offer retail and mobile betting. The Missouri Gaming Commission would oversee the industry.
The tax rate is set at 10% but, unlike other locales, Missouri’s sports-betting tax revenue would be dispersed at the county level.
Public opinion varies: Recent polling from Emerson College Polling/The Hill indicated the initiative is far from a sure thing:
Wisdom of the crowd: Underscoring the importance of public understanding and messaging, Emerson College Polling senior director Matt Taglia said: “I think that there’s some messaging work to do here if you’re on the side of passing sports betting in Missouri,” he said.
“I don’t think folks necessarily know what all it entails, but a lot of them are, in principle, supportive of the idea.”
On the plus side: Working in Missouri’s favor, there are few voices of opposition outside of the typical anti-gambling crowd. And in support of the measure, you have professional sports teams and national sports-betting operators.
Also working in its favor, the measure earmarks at least $5m toward problem gambling funding.
The remainder of the tax revenue is designated towards education, making the initiative a much easier sell to the general public.
Grass is greener: A third factor is Kansas’ attempt to woo two professional sports teams based on the Missouri side of Kansas City (the MLB’s Royals and the NFL’s Chiefs) over to the Kansas side by offering stadium deals partially funded by sports-betting revenue.
In the Emerson-Hill poll, respondents were asked how important it was to keep these teams in Kansas City.
Unlike the sports-betting question, the results were overwhelmingly one-sided.
Given the support of the state’s professional sports teams, keeping these franchises in Missouri could be a big selling point for legalizing sports betting.
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Fintech read across
Games without frontiers: The UK’s financial watchdog has warned trading firms that various forms of gamification designed to entice consumers via offering rewards and prize draws may push them towards riskier and more frequent trading.
Testing it out: In an FCA first, the organization built an experimental trading app platform to test the effects of different engagement practices on reading behavior. The FCA had previously warned retail financial trading apps to review their game-like design features.
Via operating the app, the FCA found push notifications and points and prize draws increased the number of trades made, by 11% and 12% respectively.
Similarly, push notifications and points and prize draws increased the proportion of trades that were in risky investments by 8% and 6% respectively.
Keeping an eye out: Sheldon Mills, executive director of Consumers and Competition at the FCA, said that, with usage and popularity of trading apps growing, the FCA would be keeping them under review to “make sure customers can make investment decisions that suit their needs.”
Calendar
Jul 17-20: National Council of Legislators from Gaming States, Pittsburgh
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