Betway drops betting on player transfers

The operator says it will no longer offer betting markets for football transfers following two high-profile disputes.

UK.- Online gambling operator Betway has said it will stop offering betting markets on football player transfers across all of its territories following two high-profile disputes involving Premier League players.

It has called on other bookmakers to follow its lead.

English Premier League players Daniel Sturridge (then at Liverpool FC) and Kieran Trippier (then at Tottenham Hotspurs) were both sanctioned by the English Football Association this year for breaching betting rules.

Sturridge was given a four-month ban and a £75,000 fine in March after the FA decided the striker had passed insider information to family members so they could bet on his then-mooted transfer to Sevilla FC.

Full-back Kieran Trippier was charged by the FA in May for leaking information to friends about his transfer to Atletico Madrid in summer 2019. He has until June 26 to respond.

FA rules state that registered professionals must not bet directly nor instruct or enable anyone else to bet on the result, progress, any other aspect of the sport, including transfers. 

Alan Alger, Head of Corporate Communications at Betway, said: “The FA have strict rules on betting and we feel that offering odds on players to move to specific clubs highlights a grey area which has caused issues in the past. It is best removed as an option.

“When there are hundreds of prices and markets offered on most games, this is part of the football betting experience that we are happy to see shut down.”

Last month Betway sealed a sponsorship deal with Spanish La Liga side Sevilla.