FanDuel has decided to pay out the full $82,000 to New Jersey bettor Anthony Prince on a $110 bet he made on the Denver Broncos vs Oakland Raiders game last weekend. FanDuel’s automated system had erroneously generated long odds of 750-1 towards the end of the game, resulting in Prince’s big win. The firm initially said it would not pay out on the bet, but having consulted with regulators it has since backed down.
In a statement, the company confirmed the payout, saying: “Above all else, sports betting is supposed to be fun. As a result of a pricing error this weekend, it wasn’t for some of our customers. For eighteen seconds, bettors were offered odds paying out 750-1 on the Denver Broncos converting a 36 yard field goal. A 36 yard field goal has approximately an 85% chance of success, so the astronomical odds offered on something highly likely to occur was very obviously a pricing error. These kinds of issues are rare, but they do happen. We have clear house rules about how such obvious pricing errors are treated, which is to pay winners at the correct price.
“For those familiar with the industry these rules are understood, but we realize a lot of our customers are new to sports betting and were not familiar. We want FanDuel to be a sportsbook for all bettors, and we want sports betting to be fun. So, this one’s on the house. We are paying out these erroneous tickets and wish the lucky customers well. Going forward, we are working with the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement to improve our processes and procedures. We will also work with others in the industry on educating bettors on these and similar instances and how they work.”
As a further gesture of goodwill, the firm also said it would give away $82,000 to its customers, by adding $1,000 to the account of 82 ‘lucky users’. Any person who has a FanDuel Sportsbook online account as of 10AM ET this Sunday will be eligible for random selection.
