Spread betting firm counting the cost after at least two Rugby World Cup games cancelled this weekend
Leading spread betting firm Sporting Index are staring down the barrel of a six-figure payout after World Rugby and the Japan Rugby 2019 Organising Committee took the decision to cancel two matches this weekend due to the predicted impact of Typhoon Hagibis.
The England v France and New Zealand v Italy pool games have both been cancelled, with all four teams awarded two points as part of a 0-0 draw. This has a major effect on a number of Sporting Index’s long-term tournament markets, including total tournament points, total tournament tries and shirt numbers – the aggregate of every try scorers’ shirt number throughout the tournament.
All long-term markets are settled in accordance with the Sporting Index rule book, which means the official result of these matches is 0-0. This is great news for sellers (those who bet lower on the tournament markets), but potentially terrible for buyers (those who bet higher).
In an extremely unusual situation, Sporting Index have taken the extraordinary decision to compensate buyers of affected long-term markets with an allocation of points for these cancelled matches.
The allocation Sporting Index clients will receive is determined by the Sporting Index Rugby Trading Team who will allocate the mid-point figure that any particular market was priced up at. For example, the England v France total points market was priced up in the Sporting Index systems as 34-37, so buyers of long-term total tournament points will be compensated with a refund on their account of 35.5 points multiplied by their stake.
Karl Suntay, Client Services Director at Sporting Index, said: “Our decision to compensate buyers in this highly unusual scenario means that sellers have had all their Christmases come at once while buyers have been extremely well looked after.
“All markets will always be settled in accordance with the Sporting Index rule book and the decision to compensate those who have bought affected long-term markets is costing us a six-figure sum. Hopefully this rubber stamps Sporting Index’s reputation with our clients as being known as ‘Sporting by name and Sporting by nature.”
There is the threat of another two matches being cancelled on Sunday – Scotland v Japan and Namibia and Canada – and buyers can rest assured that Sporting Index will continue to look after them should this situation arise again.
About Sporting Index
Sporting Index is best known as the world’s largest sports spread betting business, with a recently launched online fixed odds service, offering the widest range of markets and taking some of the largest bets on sporting, political and entertainment events around the world.
Sporting Index forms part of The Sporting Group with c.300 staff, based mainly at its London HQ. The Sporting Group was acquired by French lottery company FDJ (Française des Jeux) in June 2019 and Sporting Index is the undisputed world leader in sports spread betting, dominating the global market with an estimated 80%+ market share. Today it offers sports fans the opportunity to bet on thousands of markets per week on a wide variety of sports, political and showbiz events, as well as on a portfolio of unique virtual games and casino products. Clients transact via its award-winning mobile phone applications, websites and a 24/7 voice telephony service. Sporting Index’s B2C business continues to grow in the face of a fiercely competitive online betting market.
At the heart of the business is a world class trading, modelling and liability management capability that is widely acknowledged as amongst the best in the global betting market. The Group combines the latest technology with unrivalled trader expertise to service its core sports spread betting and fixed odds clients, as well as an increasing number of Business-to-Business partners who rely on the company’s fixed-odds in-play pricing, trading and modelling expertise to underpin their own sportsbook operations via the Sporting Solutions brand. This has established itself as a leading provider to lotteries and “Tier One” operators, with a number of flagship betting brands signed up.
Sporting Index is authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority and the UK Gambling Commission.
