AGCO imposes $350,000 penalty to FanDuel

(PRESS RELEASE) -- The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario has ordered FanDuel Canada ULC (FanDuel) to pay a $350,000 penalty for failing to appropriately identify and report unusual and suspicious betting and match-fixing activity involving events with known integrity concerns.

Following an in-depth review, the AGCO determined that between October 23rd to November 30th, 2024, FanDuel accepted 144 bets from three Ontario player accounts on Czech Table Tennis Star Series matches that displayed multiple indicators associated with match-fixing. The AGCO's review concluded that, despite these warning signs, FanDuel failed to meet its obligations to identify the unusual and suspicious activity, respond to those activities and report them. As a result, betting on the affected events was permitted to continue uninterrupted for several weeks.

The AGCO's review identified numerous red flags that should have prompted action, including abrupt shifts in wagering behavior and betting lines on matches involving two specific athletes, a concentration of bets on athletes losing their matches, an implausible and near-perfect win-rate, and clear links and synchronized wagering across the accounts involved in the unusual or suspicious activity. This activity occurred after previous industry warnings about the risk of integrity concerns with this particular tournament series.

iGaming operators act as a critical first line of defense in protecting the integrity of Ontario's sports betting market and in supporting the fight against betting-related match fixing. In a global sports betting market, the failure of operators in one jurisdiction to report unusual or suspicious activity undermines the ability of regulators, police services, and sports authorities around the world to identify and disrupt organized efforts to fix games or bets.

Once an operator identifies these types of activities, they are required to report it to Independent Integrity Monitors. IIMs share this information across the broader network of regulated iGaming operators to detect related activity on their gaming sites, and with leagues and sports governing bodies so they can investigate potential integrity breaches involving matches or athletes. For Ontarians to have confidence that they are betting on fair games and events with honest outcomes, the AGCO requires operators to have robust controls in place to quickly identify unusual or suspicious betting activity and intervene to protect bettors when it occurs.

iGaming operators served with an Order of Monetary Penalty may appeal the AGCO's action within 15 days to the License Appeal Tribunal (LAT) , an adjudicative body that is part of Tribunals Ontario and independent of the AGCO.

The AGCO continues to monitor Ontario's regulated iGaming operators to ensure they meet their obligations to protect players and uphold a fair, integrity-driven betting environment for Ontarians.

"In an era of heightened scrutiny on sports integrity, igaming operators must be vigilant and proactive in detecting suspicious betting activity and taking appropriate steps to protect their patrons. We will continue to hold all regulated operators accountable to these standards. Protecting fair play is essential to maintaining public trust," said Dr. Karin Schnarr, Chief Executive Officer and Registrar, AGCO