Sportsbet Sued by Aussie Gamblers For ‘Illegal’ In-Play Betting

January 20, 2025

Sportsbet, the primary Australian brand of Flutter Entertainment, is being sued in a class-action lawsuit by bettors who incurred losses while utilizing its “Fast Code” service. 

The legal action, initiated on December 24 in the Supreme Court of Victoria, contends that all “live wagers” – also referred to as in-play wagers – made via Fast Code from December 24, 2018, to December 24, 2024, were unlawful, and millions in losses need to be refunded to the plaintiffs.

"Betting on a sporting event after the event commences is prohibited in Australia. There is an exception to this if the bet is made wholly by telephone,” said Elizabeth O’Shea, a lawyer representing the plaintiffs, in a statement.

“We believe that Sportsbet’s use of the Fast Code service is not just an attempt to circumvent important laws aiming to prevent gambling harm, it is also illegal because key information about the bet is communicated by punters otherwise than by a voice call.”

Calling It In 

Australia's Interactive Gambling Act (IGA), established 24 years ago, forbids wagers on events that have already started, except when they are made through the telephone. 

Online operators like SportsBet tried various technical workaround solutions that they thought would bypass this problem. 

The initial offering was William Hill's "Click to Call" feature. This enabled gamblers to swiftly create an in-game bet online, which would produce an alphanumeric code. This could subsequently be "set up" for an automated service to facilitate live betting. SportsBet’s Fast Code is fundamentally the same system. 

A 2016 revision to the IGA sought to address the loophole by claiming that the in-play ban applied to online gambling operators. 

The attempt to heighten the friction between the bettor and the wagering process was ultimately overlooked by certain sportsbooks, which maintained that their offerings were lawful under the IGA. 

On The Line 

In December 2023, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) determined after a yearlong inquiry that the operators violated the IGA. 

The ACMA emphasized that details regarding the selection of the bet, type of bet, and bet amount, along with confirmation of the bet, must be given by a customer entirely through a phone call. 

Nonetheless, the ACMA chose not to act against the operators, such as Sportsbet, since they had “implemented measures to guarantee their use of Fast/Quick Codes adheres to applicable interactive gambling regulations.” 

The ACMA stated that the codes will now only be produced before the start of a sporting event. 

Nonetheless, the legal action claims that “Sportsbet indicated to the plaintiff and group members that the Fast Code service was legitimate,” while “participating in misleading or deceptive behavior in violation of the Australian Consumer Law.”