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Consumers beware. Regulators have sided with Penn National's Barstool Sportsbook for voiding bets on outcomes they claim were already known over an hour prior. They blamed a software error for allowing this mishap to occur.
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The software in question is supposed to have underdone rigorous testing by state regulators and is supposed to be compliant prior to a gaming firm obtaining a license, at least in theory.
Kambi is the software provider of Barstool Sportsbook. We'd be remiss in not mentioning a few sportsbook operators have been moving away from Kambi in recent months, Unibet among them.
Penn Sports Interactive asked the Massachusetts Gaming Commission for permission to void 257 affected wagers tied to Sunday's Giants-Cardinals game impacting 59 customers, all presumably in the commonwealth. Barstool Sportsbook operates in four other states where the company appeared able to void these wagers without approval from regulators.
"Penn Sports Interactive ("PSI") has submitted a request to void wagers after becoming aware of wagers placed on markets on outcomes that had already concluded. A total of 257 wagers were placed on these impacted markets by a total of 59 customers for a grand total of $47,759.94.
On September 19, 2023, at approximately 11:20 ET, PSI informed the Sports Wagering Division of the incident and provided a full detailed report and the request to void on Wednesday, September 20, 2023, at approximately 11:00 ET."
Geoff Zochodne, reporter for Covers.com, confirmed the MGC sided with Penn:
"The MGC approved the request to void the wagers, although it sounds like they may not be so forgiving if it happens again."
Farmsteader asked of Barstool Sports:
"@stoolpresidente you really gonna let these ppl get screwed like this by a book running under your name?"
But Barstool Sports is no longer associated with Penn National/Penn Sports Interactive, nor are they associated with Barstool Sportsbook.
That site is soon to be rebranded as ESPN Bet, in conjunction with the Disney-owned sports network ESPN.
Does ESPN or Disney really need these headaches?
Penn National stood to lose $47,759.94 from this glitch in Massachusetts. It's not immediately clear the amounts in the other 15 states where the site currently operates. But to put this in perspective, FanDuel admitted to losing $20 million on a prop bet offered last week whereby every NFL team kicked a field goal. FanDuel took it on the chin and there are some saying this is perhaps the best marketing campaign that company has ever engaged in.
It's not a matter of IF, but WHEN, the soon-to-be-rebranded ESPN Bet software glitch reappears and Penn starts voiding bets again. You don't have to be a Miss Cleo or Nostradamus to make this type of prediction.
- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com
