Betsson warned over bets on rule violations in Swedish football

The operator has been warned by Sweden’s gaming regulator for breaching the country’s ban on offering bets on rule violations.

Sweden.- The national gaming regulator Spelinspektionen has issued a warning to Betsson for offering bets on rule violations in sports, which is banned under new Swedish sports betting restrictions that were intended to combat match-fixing.

The regulator said it received a tip-off in May informing it that the operator offered bets on rule violations in a match between Malmö FF and Elfsborg in the top-flight Allsvenskan league. Under rules introduced last year, operators cannot offer bets on any violations such as yellow cards or penalties.

Betsson admitted that it had offered the bets but only as part of a combination bet created by a third-party supplier. It said the bets did not conflict with the ban because the fact they were offered as combination bets would make it difficult for them to be used for match-fixing.

It said that it had only taken 30 bets on the market, totalling SEK3,000. All 30 bets were declared void and the stakes were returned to players after Spelinspektionen raised the issue.

It added that it now had the technology to prevent this type of bet from being offered in Sweden again and had ensured the third-party provider would prevent the issue from occurring in the future.

Combination bets also “obviously” prohibited, Spelinspektionen says

As such, Spelinspektionen let the operator off with only a warning, but it said the bets offered “obviously” breached match-fixing rules and that the fact they were combination bets “makes no difference.”

It added that Betsson’s belief that such bets should be permitted was an aggravating factor.

See also: Pontus Lindwall to remain CEO at Betsson