Bet365 Operator Hillside Sports Fined by Swedish Gambling Authority

The Swedish Gambling Authority has fined Bet365 operator Hillside Sports after the company offered wagering on a match in which most players were underage.

Hillside Receives Warning and Penalty From Gambling Authority

The Swedish Gambling Authority has issued a warning and a KR 1 million ($ 116,000) fine to local Bet365 operator Hillside Sports. The business broke Swedish law, according to the authority, by offering bets on a soccer match in which the majority of the players were under the age of 18.

The match in question took place on March 28, 2020, between Kronängs IF and Mariedals IK. After an extensive review, the Swedish Gambling Authority discovered that 24 of the 34 players were beneath the legal age of 18. Bet365 allegedly violated Chapter 8 Section 2.2 of the Swedish Gambling Act by offering bets on the match, according to the authority.

Hillside refutes the charge, claiming that merely providing odds was legal due to the fact that the match was not intended specifically for underage players. The company also stated that it has already taken immediate corrective steps to ensure that this does not happen again. Hillside has halted lower-division betting and voided all bets on the offending match, among other things.

Bet365 took a similar stance. According to the operator, the fact that the majority of the players turned out to be underage was an unfortunate coincidence that could not have been foreseen.

Furthermore, Bet365 argued that if it had indeed acted in violation of the Swedish Gambling Act, then a warning was the only suitable action. The company insisted that the offer was only for a single match and was due to an unintentional error.  

Authority Rejects Companies’ Claims But Lowers Fine

The Swedish Gambling Authority has rejected the claims made by both Hillside and Bet365. The authorities were adamant that the corporations’ activities were a direct and serious infringement that deserved more than a warning.

Hillside’s decision to discourage more underage betting, as well as the fact that it was a one-time occurrence, are significant mitigating factors, according to the authority.

Hillside and Bet365 have tried to contest the basis for calculating the penalty amount. The Swedish Gambling Authority claimed that the penalty should be calculated based on the total amount of money wagered in Sweden. Bet365 proposed that the fine be calculated based on its Swedish revenue, but this was immediately dismissed.

The Swedish Gambling Authority decided on a fine of kr 1 million after considering the mitigating factors.