Sportsbet.com.au, also known as Sportsbet, is an Australian online bookmaker. Sportsbet is licensed as a corporate bookmaker in the Northern Territory under the Racing and Betting Act 1993. Sportsbet offers betting services online through its website and its mobile app as well as by telephone, and has more than 1.25 million Australian customers as at the end of 2019. Sportsbet operates within the strict boundaries set by multiple Australian regulatory authorities at a federal and state level. This regulation involves varying restrictions on products and promotional activities that can be offered by licensed corporate bookmakers in Australia. The company was acquired by Paddy Power in December 2010, and since 2 February 2016, it has been owned by Flutter Entertainment plc. Flutter Entertainment plc is a bookmaking business created by the merger of Paddy Power and Betfair. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It operates under various brands including Betfair, Paddy Power, Sportsbet, TVG and FanDuel.
History
The business name Sportsbet Australia was first registered in 1994, with the Sportsbet.com.au domain name registered in 1999. In 2005, Matthew Tripp bought all shares of Sportsbet. In May 2009, 51% of Sportsbet.com.au was acquired by Irish bookmaker Paddy Power. The company would keep the name Sportsbet, and continue to be run as a separate entity while offering additional services. The takeover allowed Sportsbet.com.au to acquire rival betting company International All Sports Limited, for 27.2 million euros. In March 2011, Paddy Power took full ownership of Sportsbet.com.au, paying A$132.6 million for the remaining 39.2% share, which valued the entire company at A$338 million. Paddy Power and British rival Betfair agreed terms for a merger on 8 September 2015. The business is owned 52% by the former Paddy Power shareholders and 48% by the former Betfair shareholders. The merger was completed on 2 February 2016. On 5 April 2016, it was announced that 650 jobs in United Kingdom and Ireland would be lost at the company. On 6 March 2019, Paddy Power Bet Fair announced that it would rebrand as Flutter Entertainment plc, pending shareholder approval at the company’s annual general meeting in May. Flutter was originally the name of a betting exchange acquired by Betfair in December 2001. The company stated that the rebrand, which took place on 28 May 2019, would not affect the company’s individual customer facing gaming brands. In May 2020, the global merger between Flutter Entertainment and The Stars Group was finalised following regulatory and shareholder approvals. Sportsbet and BetEasy formed the Australian component of the merger. Incumbent CEO of Sportsbet Barni Evans was appointed to lead the combined Sportsbet and BetEasy businesses, with a decision made to move forward with the sole Sportsbet brand, retiring the BetEasy brand following a period of migration and integration.
Sportsbet has been a leader in establishing responsible gambling initiatives and tools to protect its customers and the wider community. It has supported restrictions on advertising to mitigate the risk of advertising indirectly to minors, and in 2017 played a key role in establishing the independent peak body representing online wagering, Responsible Wagering Australia. In 2015, Sportsbet launched the responsible gambling tool, Take a Break, the industry's first self-service product, that allows customers to step away from using the Sportsbet product either temporarily or permanently. Sportsbet was also an early adopter of providing the option of Deposit Limits - allowing a customer to set a personal deposit limit in order to maintain control and limitation. Deposit limits can be set for a 24 hour, weekly or 28 day period.
Management
Sportsbet's current CEO is Barni Evans. Barni joined Paddy Power in 2001 as Director of Marketing for Paddy Power in Europe. He joined Sportsbet as a non-executive in 2009, and as an executive in 2011, serving in commercial and marketing roles before being appointed CEO in March 2018.
