Arbusers

Abandoned matches

Abandoned matches tend to be problematic and can happen often due to meteorological conditions, injuries, crowd problems, black swans (like the Covid pandemic), etc.

What happens to the bets that have already been placed in the situation of abandonment, really depends on the type of event , the type of sport and how the bookie decides to treat this subject.

In theory every bookie treats it differently and the only way to get informed about the conditions is by thoroughly reading the T&C’s.

*We recommend that you do this by default before engaging in any betting activities anyway.

There is no big difference between postponed and abandoned matches, they are usually treated the same. In big lines, if a match is cancelled the bets will be deemed void and your stake will be returned.

The definition of an Abandoned match may vary but in general for a match to be Abandoned there are some variables and factors that come into play.

Here I will list general cases that could happen, and actions that should be taken by the operator (subject to change):

if a match is cancelled before the schedule start time bets are usually deemed void
if a match is cancelled or abandoned after kick off and the result is decided upon by officials, the main result still stands, therefore the bet stands
if a match is postponed the majority of final result based bets will still stand (but again it depends on the operator’s policy)
if a match is forfeited, and a team has been given victory before the match started, bets will be voided
if a match has been cancelled or abandoned and you have placed a free bet, it depends strictly on the operator’s policy if he decides to give the money back or not.
if a match is cancelled, accumulator bets in which events that occurred are valid will remain so, the other events will be voided and the whole bet will be recalculated in function of the valid events

Let’s have a look at some examples to see of how operators treat abandoned games specifically:

888sport:

a cancelled bet is settled at odds of 1.00
if betting is affected after the start of a game, all bets will be cancelled
if one or more options of an accumulator bet are unable to stand due to abandonment or cancellation, the bet will stand and be settled based on the remaining conditions

William Hill:

if a match is cancelled, all bets will be voided (with the exceptions of postponed matches that will be played in maximum 2 days time)
if a match is abandoned, the bets will stand for events that have already taken place
if a match is cancelled, every single bet will receive a full refund

Sky Sport:

if a match is abandoned after kick-off, any bets where the outcome is decided, will stand, vice-versa, all other outcomes are voided
if the referee removes the players from the field but resumes the game before midnight, the bets will still stand

Bet365:

if a match is abandoned before it was completed, bets will be voided, except those whose result was achieved before abandonment
if one or more options of an accumulator bet are unable to stand due to abandonment or cancellation, the bet will stand and be settled based on the remaining conditions
if a match is cancelled before it started, bets are voided.

Unibet:

if a match does not start after 12 hours of its announced start time and date, all bets are cancelled
if a match is cancelled before it started, bets are voided

I always wondered what will happen in the following situation: One bets on guest team in a football. The guest team wins and the bet is settled as a winner. But the next day the home team contests the result because the guest team used a certain player without the right, or the guest team used 12 players(I heard about such case). The federation decides that the winner is the home team by 3-0. Will the bookmaker resettle the bets having in mind that the gueast team had an unfair advantage?
I presume it's different from bookie to bookie. It depends alot what was the league, how much money was wagered etc. If it's a small league, I presume the bookamer can make a gesture of goodwill and void the lost bets or even grant them as winners.
Anyone encountered this?

How many days after the game is the decision from the federation?

Let's say the very next day. The sooner the better for the sake of the example

As far as I know, there is a 72h rule for a game to be decided, so any decision within this time limit will be honoured by the bookmaker. The difficult situation would be if it takes more than 72h. Most probably in this case all bets will be graded as ''push''.

So you think they will void the guest winners and grant the host bettors?
What if the guy that bet on the guest team will withdraw all his balance. Will he have a negative balance? And much more what ifs...
I will ask in the industry and will come back with some opinions

I am only assuming. Also, if there is a scandal like this you described (12v11) I m pretty much sure the bookmakers will not grade any bet.

@arbusers, can you create a page online where we could see all terms from all bookmakers?