Report: Entain Sportsbooks Had Over 500 Problem Gambling Breaches in Australia
Posted on: May 11, 2026, 08:20h.
Last updated on: May 11, 2026, 08:20h.
- Entain has avoided regulatory fines in Australia for allegedly violating the BetStop program
- The Australian government alleges Ladbrokes and Neds allowed self-excluded gamblers to bet
Entain and its two prominent sportsbooks in Australia, Ladbrokes and Neds, committed more than 500 breaches of regulations designed to limit problem gambling. That’s according to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), which conducted a multiyear probe into the bookmakers.
The ACMA reports that Ladbrokes and Neds failed to protect consumers who sought to self-exclude from Australia’s legal sports gambling market. The Entain products allowed excluded individuals to open wagering accounts despite being registered with BetStop, the national self-exclusion register in Australia.
When someone signs up to BetStop, wagering companies must close all of that person’s accounts held within their services. In this case, Entain’s systems did not adequately identify and link all wagering accounts held by those customers across its services, including one account that remained open for more than a year after the customer had self-excluded,” said ACMA member Carolyn Lidgerwood.
Entain is among the world’s largest gaming enterprises, with a market capitalization of $4.6 billion. Along with Ladbrokes and Neds, Entain is the parent company of Coral, Eurobet, SuperSport, and Sportingbet, and holds a 50% stake in BetMGM’s operations in North America.
Entain Escapes Fines, Repercussions
ACMA regulations stipulate that licensed gaming companies that violate conditions of the BetStop program face fines of up to A$59,400 (US$43,020) per incident. With more than 500 breaches, Entain could have been on the hook for civil penalties of more than A$29.7 million.
The ACMA, however, says the statute of limitations had run its course by the time the government agency reached its findings. The rules mandate that ACMA penalize a bookmaker found noncompliant with BetStop to issue such fines within 12 months of the alleged violation. The ACMA investigation into the Entain grievances took over a year to complete.
Although this complex investigation took longer than we would have liked and financial penalties were not available to the ACMA, the court-enforceable undertaking is a serious regulatory outcome,” ACMA said. “If Entain fails to comply with the undertaking, the ACMA can seek court-ordered financial penalties.”
“The ACMA did not issue Entain with an infringement notice as that enforcement option was not available in these circumstances,” the ACMA release added. “However, failure to comply with an enforceable undertaking can result in court-ordered financial penalties.”
Aussie Problem Gambling
Australians have long had the reputation for gambling more per capita than any other country on the planet. The government, however, has worked diligently in recent years to scale back the societal harms of gambling.
BetStop went live in August 2023. The free government initiative allows Aussies to block themselves from any form of legal gambling across the country. Both online and telephone registration are offered.
To date, BetStop says nearly 60,000 Australians have signed up for the program. Self-exclusion periods range from a minimum of three months to a lifetime ban.
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