1/4/2012 03:29 PM
TopBet back on-lineTopBet (SBR rating D+) Sportsbook is back on-line.
New management acquired rights to the domain, while the betting platform is still powered by FutureBet.
TopBet claims to be doing its own processing and utilizing
FutureBet for software, hosting and wagering support. FutureBet, which is also known as Gametech/IGS, is an infamous turnkey provider that has stiffed players and sports operators more than $1M.
TopBet has been removed from the
SBR Sportsbook blacklist after six years, however SBR cautions readers to be cognizant of the risk playing at brands on the FutureBet platform. FutureBet charges TopBet a monthly
Royalty to use its services, but is able to shut the operator off at anytime or compromise player account security.
TopBet players that have outstanding claims against the sportsbook should file a
sportsbook complaint form.
11/16/2011 06:35 PM
VIPSports.eu deceptive marketingVIPSports.eu (SBR rating C) is still making deceptive sales pitches to former clients of the now defunct
VIP Sports (SBR rating B-) family.
VIPSports.eu is distributing emails suggesting that it is the same as the terminated VIP Sports operation. It is important for players to realize that the original VIP Sports is not back - former marketing personnel are attempting to capitalize on the brand's name by releasing targeted emails to former VIP Sports and
Nine.com (SBR rating B-) customers. VipSports.eu is hosted on a different wagering platform, in a different country, with different financial backing and ownership. Players should approach the new VIPSports.eu as an unknown quantity and proceed with caution as with all start-up sportsbook companies.
On November 3rd, 2011, SBR reported that VipSports.eu is the latest licensee of the
Safari Casino Group. Safari provides
VipSports.eu with wagering software, hosting and processors in exchange for a monthly
Royalty.
Safari Casino Group is most known for powering
Dimeline Sportsbook (SBR rating C),
BetTheGlobe (SBR rating D+), and
Safari Casino (SBR rating D+). |
VIPSports.eu email to players
11/3/2011 03:41 PM
VIPSports.eu targeting former VIP Sports playersVipSports.eu (SBR rating C) is the latest licensee of the
Safari Casino Group. Safari powers VipSports.eu with wagering software, hosting and processors in exchange for a monthly
Royalty. VipSports.eu distributed thousands of emails Monday morning to former players of the now defunct
VIP Sports (SBR rating B-). The
VipSports.eu manager was formerly employed by VIP Sports and possesses an original database list of VIP customers. SBR interviewed the owner of the Safari Casino Group/BTG Gaming software company who confirmed powering the new brand.
It is important to note that the original VIP Sports.com went off-line without paying all players. VIP Sports closed its doors faster than seasonal account-holders could react to a notice to withdraw their funds. SBR has assisted those players in receiving payments from another start-up sportsbook with former VIP Sports personnel,
GTbets.com (SBR rating C). SBR believes that a significant amount of VIP Sports players remain unpaid.
VIP Sports player: I am a long time, 7 year vipsports customer, was never told it was closing. I only make bets during college football season (American football) and just noticed today that my account was closed. I had a 700 USD in the account and would appreciate the money back.
SBR advises players to steer clear of any VIP associated property.
VIPSports.eu players with feedback or complaints are asked to submit a sportsbook complaint form, or dial 1-830-255-4677 during normal business hours to speak with a Sportsbook Review dispute analyst.
4/6/2011 11:30 AM
SBR interviews EasyStreet casino winnerSBR's own Judie Russell interviewed the now infamous poster, "cory1111", regarding his $46,000 win at EasyStreet Sports casino.
EasyStreet (SBR rating D+) is refusing to pay the Video Poker winnings, claiming that the player violated its rule on artificial intelligence play.
EasyStreet believes that the player used software to automatically make his decisions in the "Jacks or Better" game. EasyStreet maintains this position despite allegedly contradictory statements from casino software creator, Digital Gaming Solutions. DGS' owner, Chris Davis, reportedly spoke with the player and personally indicated that no abnormalities were found from analyzing his game sessions.
It is unclear if
EasyStreet is in possession of evidence to justify confiscating the player's winnings. Thus far they have only argued that a human could not average so many hands per hour without deviating from good to perfect strategy.
It has been noted from some readers that the popular Jacks or Better game does not require an overly mathematical mind to play perfectly. In addition, EasyStreet had the "hold winning hands" option enabled, so that if a pair of jacks or greater were dealt, those cards would automatically be held so that the player could choose to draw only the remaining cards.
The second argument raised by EasyStreet is that the player hit three
Royal flushes in his winning run. EasyStreet has attempted to discredit the legitimacy of the play by pointing out that the player hit three
Royal flushes in a small sample size. EasyStreet only quoted the amount of hands played in winning sessions, not all sessions, thus no accurate statistical analysis can be performed.
SBR's mediator Justin7 is preparing a new video review on this dispute. Justin intends to focus on the RX Forum's decision to side with their forum advertiser, EasyStreet Sportsbook. Justin's previous video on this sportsbook casino complaint can be found in this
EasyStreet casino winner dispute.
3/15/2011 06:20 PM
EasyStreet casino winner accused of using robot software
EasyStreet (SBR rating C+) casino dispute.
EasyStreet tells SBR that a player who won $46,000, by hitting three
Royal flushes in 12 hours, is under investigation. The player has been locked out of his account during the investigation. |
EasyStreet statement to player
7/21/2008 11:43 PM
Player files $500,000 complaint against BetRoyal (SBR rating D-)
SBR Justin investigated the available facts of the complaint. In 2004 a group of players were invited by
BetRoyal management to trade prices and
betting odds at
BetRoyal against other
sportsbooks . The manager who had made the arrangement had taken a position with
BetUS (SBR rating D+) before this issue emerged.
Bet
Royal management would often solicit sharp players to bet off action they did not want while offering them special low juice, or even no juice lines, to increase liquidity. For example, if the sportsbook felt it had too much exposure on one play or wanted to gamble on the other team, it would make the applicable vig pricing appealing for their players that were known to trade on the
sports betting market. The
sportsbook was aware that at least two individuals were placing wagers on this account. The deposited funds initially lost but the invested $85,000 in deposits eventually earned a balance of $586,000. Several days before
SBGglobal (SBR rating D-) completed its buyout of Bet
Royal last year, the
Royal website was taken off of the servers. When the site returned on the SBG platform, all winnings were removed from the account.
During the investigation,
Royal, which was known for odd player arrangements and high risk bookmaking models, claimed that it had an agreement with the account holder that he would never take out winnings – only deposits.
Royal claimed that the players were using some sort of hedging strategy where they would guarantee that they lost money at
Royal, and won at other books.
Royal offered no solid proof of this, often referring to the deal as something arranged independently by the manager that had moved on. The account holder denies there was any such agreement to “not withdraw winnings.” He rightfully points out that such an arrangement is not logical and describes a scenario where the account could only lose money. SBR told
Royal that their explanation was not believable. The account holder believes Bet
Royal erased the winnings in order to take $500,000 in liabilities off the books before selling to
SBG Global.
3/30/2008 07:56 PM
12/31/2007 12:27 AM
Oddsmaker (SBR rating D-) & Futurebet tries to scam potential book owner
The sportsbook operation blatantly lies to an individual interested in owning a gambling site, trying to convince him that IGamingSoftware is not the new name for, or affiliated with, Futurebet. "IGS Ron" tells the potential site owner that Oddsmaker is one of the books that IGS owns and it is not Futurebet, forgetting that the Oddsmaker cashier page is labeled as "Futurebet payment systems." Futurebet Gaming stiffed the majority of its white label webmaster clients in 2007 while moving Oddsmaker and BetOnUSA to the gaming platform which it renamed IGamingSoftware or "IGS." The partnership with Oddsmaker and sister site BetOnUSA is the primary source of revenue for Futurebet ownership.
Dear Sir/Madam, I was contacted by Mr.Ron **** from FutureBet now(IGS), and he tried to pull off a similar scam with me as well, but thanks to your website I was saved, I am ready to testify at any point if you wish because you just saved I don’t know probably 500K of mine and I am very glad that I checked your website. I have sent a copy of my conversation with him in an email just so that you know that he is still active and doing this. He had called me last week and given me figures for starting up a casino from scratch which are as below:
70,000 Software
20,000 Reserve
15% Monthly Royalty
1500 Monthly Maintenance
Thank you once again SBR! |
See email exchange
12/18/2007 11:33 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) website down; reportedly under denial-of-service attack.
An
SBR poster is told "
Our internet provide is under DDOS attack so we recommend that you place you wagers with ample amount of time via call center." Others have been told the sportsbook is
"performing server maintenance." Bet
Royal is an SBGglobal-owned sportsbook now known for
winnings confiscations that took place in October.
12/8/2007 12:10 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) website off-line for some users since December 2nd. Players can access their
Royal accounts at former SBG Global sportsbook website, SportGamblers.com. SportGamblers.com directs visitors to the
BetRoyal homepage.
10/18/2007 11:22 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) locks 30 players out of their accounts citing "syndicate play." Royal Sports had advertised with a handicapper that was having a successful year before the book was purchased by
SBG Global (SBR rating D-). The capper repeatedly warned what was now SBG's operation that he and his users were on a winning streak but the book said that it was not concerned because "
all handicappers eventually lose." He and the players following his picks won in excess of six figures. The sportsbook now claims it is investigating the group for fraud and has frozen all winnings. SBR to interview the handicapper and contact SBG before updating in further detail. |
Read SBRforum poster's report editor correction: Pay-service handicapper counts 18 frozen accounts, which was confirmed by Bet
Royal account manager. Five players file complaint with SBR.
7/3/2007 03:38 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D+) migration to
SBGGlobal (SBR rating D-) platform completed. Players have complained of wrong account balances and bounced emails.
Royal management tells SBR they are currently addressing technical errors and expect these issues to be resolved today.
6/29/2007 03:36 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D+) purchased by SBG Global (SBR rating D-)
SBG will move Bet
Royal from its Oficentro office and players to its Mercedes software platform on Monday.
Royal has been lowered from C- to D+ and will remain under review.
Royal Sports has improved its service in 2007 and support management, which is expected to stay with the book, has been attentive to player matters over the course of the past year.
SBGglobal has been on the SBR Blacklist since 2001 with most complaints coming from big players who were cheated out of large winnings. |
Royal Sports/SBG Statement
4/12/2007 06:23 PM
3/10/2007 12:25 PM
1/3/2007 06:47 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating C-) players complain of stalled payouts.
Royal Sports Management states that all pending withdrawal requests will be fulfilled this week and that merchant banking accounts are currently being funded.
Player: for the last week and a half i have been trying to reviece my 2 payouts per week of 2500 but they just wont pay me my money and i dont get any answers from there customer service department....i requested payouts on the 22nd and 23rd and only recieved 1 payment on the 28th and i call and call and ask them whats the deal the the other 2500 and they dont give me a answer and i just keep requesting it so maybe you guys can maybe speed up the process i have 11k in my account and i have quit betting in there becuase i am scared i wont recieve my money if i win more please let me know
9/29/2006 06:52 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating C-) to offer to settle debts with vicitims of Virtual Group Sportsbooks. The sportsbooks include, but are not limited to,
ScoreSportsbook,
PyramidSportsbook,
KingSportsbook and
TNTsportsbook. These properties, which were operated by the Bet
Royal parent company, closed their doors in 2003 making players the victim of theft. Customers are encouraged to contact SBR with balance and account information.
Royal Sports has agreed to allow SBR to mediate claims where balances are questionable. An official statement is expected early next week.
9/2/2006 09:41 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: BetRoyal (SBR rating C-) adds "payout issues" button which points to an email for the book’s General Manager.
Royal tells SBR they are making an effort to give players earlier access to management.
Players who use this feature are welcome to copy to
SBR.
8/8/2006 10:03 PM
Player wins $429,000 on a Royal Flush hand playing Pinnacle Casino’s stud poker August 2nd.
Pinnacle Sports’ Casino is powered by Blue Chip Games’ casino suite which is widely considered to be the fairest casino software online.
8/3/2006 09:02 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: SBR receives three slow-pay complaints from
Royal Sports (SBR rating C-) bettors in two weeks. The latest complaint comes from a player who requested $3620 via bankwire on July 10th. Management assures the client that his funds will be processed today, meaning the player is looking at a one month turnaround.
BetRoyal CFO tells SBR that strict new accounting policies will keep payments from being delayed and will be in place later this month.
7/2/2006 10:32 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Three
BetRoyal (SBR rating C-) players, each with five-figure balances, slow-paid for over one month. Two of these bettors tell SBR that previous payouts have been weeks apart and for less than the requested amount. SBR to speak with management on the players’ behalf.
6/6/2006 10:56 AM
777Rock (SBR rating B) move to
Cascade (SBR rating A-) office complete. Cascade ownership tells SBR that 777 will change from -107 to -105 pricing. BetCascade Management has hired Richard Jones, formerly Customer Service Manger of
Royal Sports (Bet
Royal), to assist with managing new brands. A deal to add Dimeplayer (SBR rating B-) has also been completed although software compatibility issues have delayed the server change.
6/2/2006 07:02 PM
BetRoyal &
Lay107 upgraded from D to C-
4/27/2006 08:27 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: EvertonBet (SBR rating D) taken off-line; client reports missing funds. SBR to contact Evertonbet’s service provider, Bet
Royal (SBR rating D).
Player: "
Hi Bill, I emailed you last month about a problem ive had with evertonbet. I placed a bet at the start of january. The bet won. Which was £180. 2 days later evertonbet had their whole system taken over by betRoyal. The winnings from the bet went missing from my account and they claim their was no such bet placed. I put in a withdrawal request before the system changed and after alot of emails from them telling me the problem had been sorted nothing has happened. Now evertonbet have folded i dont know what to do. What would you suggest?"
4/28/2006 (11:37:57 AM) UPDATE: Royal Sports agrees to credit player £180
2/13/2006 08:38 PM
The EOG.com’s Ken W warns players that Royal Sports(SBR rating D) is in trouble. SBR has been made aware of large players being slow paid. However, slow paying large players is hardly new to Bet
Royal and more like standard operating procedure at least for the past two years. SBR does not have first hand knowledge or supporting information to warrant a downgrade from the current SBR D rating at this time although players should take EOG warnings seriously.
2/12/2006 11:35 AM
Merger and Aquistion activety at all time high. VIP Sports is the most active buyer. YouWager, Bet
Royal and many smaller books are all said to be Sellers actively seeking buyouts. BetCRIS could also be a Buyer under the right circumstances which recently has focused on bailing out small operators. BetWWTS has made several trips and has signed at least one confidentiality agreement although we are unaware of any serious interest. Sportsbooks who have had made M&A headlines in the recent past that appear to be holding pat; Hollywood, BoDog, SportsInteraction are said to be no longer active Sellers. Smaller operations such as BetMaker, YouWager and Sportbet along with operations that have difficult reputations such as
Royal Sports have mostly signed confidentiality agreements giving buyers a chance to possibly make an offer. SBR expects a pick-up in M&A activity despite rising valuations.
2/4/2006 03:07 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Two Bet
Royal slow-paid clients including SBRforum poster paid in full.
Royal reports processing payout for 3rd player via credit card refund, blames European credit card system for delay.
2/3/2006 11:36 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: SBRforum poster complains
Royal Sports(SBR rating D) unable to process payout.
"...reloaded recently and did the same thing only this time my Neteller payout was delayed...made the request on Monday and still don’t have the money Friday night...kept getting the run around from customer service saying they are having Neteller problems due to an unusually large amount of Neteller payouts they recently processed they have exhausted their Neteller funds and need to delay payouts....Very scary explanation."
SBR has received two other withdrawal complaints from the company’s users, one from Bet
Royal sister site
EvertonBet(SBR rating D), within the past week.
12/17/2005 04:51 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Player waiting two weeks for a Fedex tracking number from
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-).
Royal management assures SBR that the player’s check will be sent on Monday, the 11th business day. To
Royal’s credit, they have changed the listed wait time for a tracking number from 3-7 days to 10 days. Recent player feedback suggests that a bank check will take 21 days to be in-hand.
12/3/2005 03:27 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: GolfingGods(SBR rating D-) owner comments on recent difficulties, assures SBR accounting issues have been addressed."I can thankfully report that our Neteller situation is now corrected and we are free to move unlimited funds to client accounts through Neteller. As you know we were restricted previously but I am glad to say that our bank (Royal Bank of Scotland) and Neteller have now lifted restrictions.""We are both aware of the initial difficulties faced by Golfinggods but as I have pointed out in this email these issues have now been resolved. I look forward to working with you to achieve a better rating for my company on the Sports Book Review."
GolfingGods had previously blamed payout delays on limitations put in place by Neteller although alternate withdrawal options were not made available. All players who have complained of payout delays to SBR have been paid in full as of September.
11/29/2005 11:54 PM
SBR confirms payments for some players at BetRoyal(SBR rated D-) After a rash of slow pay complaints and even a player who was physically threatened, speculation intensified that
Royal Sports(SBR rated D-) may be ready to close. News of payments and partial payments are a welcome sign.
Share your recent Bet
Royal experience:
Assistance@SportsbookReview.com
11/22/2005 03:34 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) stalling, hoping to avoid $18,000 payout? The player was initially told his $9,000 bank wire request was processed four weeks ago, yet his account balance was never debited. One week after the initial request the bettor asked for an additional payout of $9,000 to a different checking account. Three weeks after
Royal confirmed that both withdrawals were cleared to be processed, customer service tells the client that they do not have any record of his withdrawal requests. The account balanace exceeds $22,000.
Players who are being slow-paid should not continue to wager with their sportsbook. Continuing to play encourages the book to deny payment, hoping that the stress and inability to bet elsewhere will cause the bettor to lose his funds.
11/6/2005 07:53 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: BetRoyal (SBR rating D) pays winning bettors mentioned in yesterday’s report. Withdrawals were issued by
Royal management after a one week delay for both players.
11/5/2005 03:35 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Two Royal Sports (SBR rating D) bettors complain of payout problems.
"Hello , I’ve been trying to withdraw $2000 for the last 4 days ,i know its not panic time yet however the worrying part is the lies they tell , "ok it will be in your a/c tomorrow etc etc " , after numerous phone calls , e-mails , live chat there csd supervisor george has just informed me that after checking with accounting ,they don’t have any record of my request , what bull****, he tells me he has personally now put in the withdrawl request and i should have the money in my neteller a/c within 48 hours , if this doesn,t happen what can i do , appart from coping it up the kazoo? I have had many dealings with on-line sportsbooks and this is the first time I’ve had a problem ,I used to check with your site before opening new a/cs butI stopped, i guess i got complacent , well this is a wake up call , i won’t be opening any a/c,s in future without at least a c rating from you guys .""I have an account with BetRoyal which i opened about two weeks ago. I loaded it up with $400 using click2pay and went on a great run. My balance now is over $6,000. For the past few days i have been given the run around about payment. they are telling me since i used click2pay they have to figure out another way to pay me back other than what i had requested (bank check, western union). thank you"It is unknown if these are isolated cases or the beginning of
Royal’s latest accounting problem. Curently SBR is monitoring only the two complaints shown above.
9/2/2005 10:13 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: SportsWager (SBR rating D+) leaves the PlayersTime Group and joins the Sportingbet Family. SportsWager players are considering themselves lucky as PlayersTime websites have been down for 4 days. SBR has received multiple slow-pay complaints from worried players who have been denied payouts during this 4 day period. PlayersTime sportsbooks are listed below.
PlayersTime
BetTheBook
FantasyIsland
GoldStar
OffshoreIsland
QuantumSportsbook
RoyalPalm
SunCoastSportsbook
SuperiorSportsbook
ThePerfectSportsbook
Vegas24Sportsbook
WinMoney
WinnersTime
8/23/2005 01:55 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Royal Sports (SBR rating D) player waiting 18 days for bank wire payment. Bet
Royal tells SBR that the payout was processed today but will not appear in the player’s account for another week.
A 2nd player also voices his frustration while waiting two weeks for a $10,000 bank check.
"
I am a long time high dollar handicapper and I am having a nightmare experience with betRoyal.com better known as Royal sports. I am up about 40k and I have been trying to get paid for weeks now. Every neteller withdraw I have asked for is delayed and takes several phone calls to get it through. I also requested a 10,000 check payment but I am at 2 weeks and doubtful it will be any time soon."
6/28/2005 07:38 PM
SBR monitoring player’s dispute with BetRoyal (SBR rating D-).
Royal management believes the issue will be resolved to the player’s satisfaction by tomorrow evening.
5/29/2005 09:57 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) asking players to wait for payouts so that they can meet their monthly quota? After waiting over three weeks for a $10,000 withdrawal the player is asked:
“Would it be possible if we proceed with your request first time Wednesday morning? We have a sales goal to meet, Tuesday is our last day to do so and I would really appreciate if maybe you could wait one more day.” This may actually be encouraging news for current customers who are attempting to interpret the most recent warning signs. In the past two weeks,
Royal has offered huge cash bonuses to those with pending payouts if they are willing to cancel their withdrawal request. SBR has also received an influx of slow-pay complaints. Although these actions would be detrimental to any sportsbook’s long term plan to turn a profit, current players can hope that accounting has exceeded the funds allocated for the month of May and that payments may be quicker at the start of June.
5/26/2005 07:40 PM
Royal Sports takes a step forward (SBR rating D) pays player $15,000 that they could of rightfully NOT paid. The player received double the agreed amount bonus from Bet
Royal and failed to report the error. He then leveraged the extra money in the casino and won $15,000. In a move that surprised SBR,
Royal Sports paid the player. Under the SBR rules of account confiscation, Sportsbooks are allowed to confiscate winnings that have been won with deposits fraudulently made or made by error. Players should be careful not to bounce automatic check deposits(ACHs or EFTs). Several players have won significant amounts of money only to find out their initial deposit did not clear the bank. In these cases, the players forfeit their winnings.
4/4/2005 12:28 PM
Royal Sports (SBR rating D) Tej sends armed men to intimidate SBR staff, SBR agrees to allow a corrected SBR Newswire. SBR reports no corrected report offered by Royal Sports. After sending three armed thugs to detain SBR staff in Costa Rica it was decided SBR would give Bet
Royal a week to clarify the SBR report that the infamous Tej was in fact the new owner of
Royal Sports. Tej’s thugs were arrested without incident by heavily armed Costa Rican police while the forced meeting between
Royal Sports and SBR was still taking place. SBR appreciates the remarkable response time and overwhelming force employed by Costa Rican police.
Royal Sports has now declined to issue a corrected statement as promised leaving little doubt that the original report by SBR was correct.
Tej’s tactics of intimidation threaten the industry and give critics of gaming in Costa Rica fuel for their argument that gaming attracts thugs, organized crime and other undesirables.
3/30/2005 11:04 AM
SBR Costa Rica office reports: BetRoyal (SBR rating D+) requests they be allowed to issue a corrected statement to SBR as to the involvement of Tej which was reported by SBR and 911 and confirmed by Roberto C,
Royal’s previous CEO.
3/27/2005 01:56 PM
Royal Sports (SBR rating D+) lowered from C- to D+, placed on SBR negative rating watch: A Bet
Royal player previously limited for arbitrage scalping now offered unlimited 25% bonuses on deposits of $5,000 or more. In another unrelated incident, a player attempting a withdraw is offered a bonus to NOT make a withdrawal until after the NCAA tournament.
2/17/2005 01:29 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: BetRoyal (SBR rating C-) refusing to pay advertising affiliate. They acknowledge that they owe over $16,000 and that they are almost three months behind in payment.
Royal has a bad habit of withholding promoters’ already earned money as leverage.
1/29/2005 10:49 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating C-) SBR rating raised on restructuring plans. Management recently disclosed detailed restructuring moves. SBR believes that these moves will strengthen
Royals’ financial position by lowering costs. Investment and effectiveness in marketing remains sufficient. There are still problems mostly with old debts, lawsuits as well as short term problems which could cause some temporary customer service issues. However, this upgrade notes that SBR does not expect any slow pay periods or financial problems in the short term.
1/10/2005 04:49 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) exits the credit business. Operating under BetMidas.com,
Royal Sports attempt at the credit side of the business is finally over. BetMidas and BetCharter were both unprofitable and highly problematic involving scam artists and stiff agents. The move is a positive one which will allow
Royal to focus on their core post-up business.
12/9/2004 10:36 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) Forced to answer in a Dutch court why they stiffed a US player for $50,000. Reporting from Curacao, Netherlands Antilles:
It all started when a California lawyer ran his winnings at
Royal to over $50,000. When it came time for a payout
Royal tried every trick in the book not to pay and when that didn’t work they even invented one never seen before in the offshore industry.
Royal claimed that the player had a history of credit card chargebacks at two other sportsbooks, therefore he must forfeit his $50,000 in winnings.
Royal admits the player never charged back anything at
Royal and they gladly accepted his bets and his business. And that’s the problem.
Royal has been using every legal maneuver possible to delay the trial and some observers think they will flee the island to avoid what is probably the short arm of Dutch justice. The player, however, has already retained legal reps in
Royal’s soon to be new home of Costa Rica. Unfortunately, most players do not have the resources of this player and can not chase down deadbeat bookmakers to the ends of the earth. Therefore it is important to play at a highly rated sportsbook so if you go on the roll of a lifetime you can savor the victory instead of chasing deadbeats.
10/30/2004 12:52 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Player reports that he is waiting three weeks for a FedEx withdrawal from
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-). He also states that his previous payout took two weeks. SBR to inquire on player's behalf.
Update: Royal has provided the player with a tracking number for FedEx payment. Management claims that FedEx had lost this player's package and is responsible for the delay.
10/25/2004 12:50 PM
Red
Royal - SBR initiates coverage at F
10/11/2004 11:44 AM
BetMidas (SBR rating F+ raised from F-) This is a per-head service offered by Royal Sports. SBR will eventually drop the coverage of this scam infested credit-only sportsbook. However, players should be aware that many supposed agents are really con artists using BetMidas and Bet
Royal to facilitate their scam. Beware of agents asking you if you would like to play on credit. If you lose they will demand immediate payment and if you win they will disappear and
Royal will tell you the agent went away for a while.
10/11/2004 11:30 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) Makes good to players scammed by Royal managed BetCharter. In a meeting with SBR in Curacao, Netherlands Antilles,
Royal Sports CEO has assured SBR that all players involved in the scam have been paid in full.
9/29/2004 02:37 PM
Russ Hawkins, a BetRoyal (SBR rating F) advertiser, defends Royal Sport’s recent scam. According to Mr. Hawkins, the
Royal Sports scam reported by SBR is common and there is no need to fault
Royal Sports for trying to make some money. SBR continually reminds players to be careful at popular sports sites. As in Mr. Hawkins case, many of these sites are simply paid by
Royal to look the other way. The subject above made no mention of the scam and even touted
Royals latest offer to unsuspecting players.
9/27/2004 02:29 PM
The BetCharter scam another black-eye for players and so-called watchdog sites. Bet
Royal (SBR rating F) who setup and managed the BetCharter scam site has bought and paid for silence on all the major watchdogs and none have even reported the scam. The ‘marks’ in this scam have settled and are being paid by
Royal for a lower settlement amount. Players must be ever vigilant of scams as well as web sites that simply appear to hold the players interest when in fact they are in the scam sportsbook’s pocket.
9/24/2004 12:00 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating F) continues to be a part in the alleged scam operation of BetCharter.com(SBR rating F-). As of noon today, the scam operation of BetCharter remains being fully serviced by
Royal Sports and the web site remains live. SBR has requested that
Royal Sports take down this web site and stop participating in this alleged scam so that the number of victims does not increase.
9/23/2004 07:50 PM
BetRoyal agrees to resolve the activity with BetCharter (SBR rating F-) Players and other victims of BetCharter should immediately stop all betting activity and call
Royal Sports as well as write SBR. Players should be aware of a scam using
Royal Sports and BetCharter. SBR will continue to monitor the settlement talks with the victims.
9/23/2004 03:41 PM
Breaking news of a sophisticated scam leads to a downgrade of all Royal Sports owned sportsbooks. Downgrades to include Bet
Royal, Lay107 and Gamblers Ave from D to F. BetCharter from D- to F-, BetMidas F+ to F- and MajorBetting unchanged at D-.
8/29/2004 09:42 AM
SBR reporting from Curacao, Netherlands Antilles: BetRoyal (SBR rating D+) in arrears to their Western Union agent. Royal Sports continued to tell this vendor for the past 6 months they were unable to make even a partial payment on this important $80,000 debt. Management of
Royal promised payment when football started but instead has put the Western Union agent on a payment plan claiming they do not have the liquidity.
Royal Sports continues to insist they have money but admit they conduct business in a dishonorable method and are in serious arrears on nearly all accounts.
8/19/2004 06:23 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D+) - former CEO claims Royal Sports has "serious issues". SBR has documented many of the problems facing
Royal and will meet for the second time this month with management on August 28th in Curacao, Netherlands Antilles.
UPDATE: Royal's management suggests the former CEO is pressing and leveraging his own business opportunities none of which has any material effect on the Royal Sports operation.
8/17/2004 01:11 PM
Bet
Royal raised from D- to D+ Other
Royal owned and co-owned books including BetMidas(F+), MajorBetting(D-), GamblersAve(D-), Lay107(D-) remain unchanged
8/9/2004 02:41 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rated D-) has positive discussion with SBR Royal Sports was rated a B- until slow pays starting in January of this year began a series of downgrades. On April 26, 2004, SBR asked
Royal Sports to allow a trusted 3rd party to verify player balances. This is an unusual situation in that
Royal claimed to have the players money but was still in slow pay mode. In today's discussion with
Royal Sports CEO Kevin King, Mr. King stated that first; there will be no more slow pays and second;
Royal would work to satisfy the SBR request that player balances be verified. SBR looks forward to positive results on both points.
8/9/2004 11:59 AM
BetRoyal (SBR D-) to be “Put” back? Reports that the deal to sell
Royal may be rescinded.
Royal Sports CEO disputes report.
6/5/2004 09:01 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) problems mount -
Royal sponsors finally admitting that this book is in serious trouble. SBR downgraded
Royal on January 6th, 2004 and has pressed
Royal for months to disclose how much players money they have left to a third party of their choice. SBR continues to request that sponsors, payment solution providers, Curacao officials and players exert pressure on
Royal to come clean and disclose what portion, if any, of players money is still held by
Royal Sports.
5/29/2004 12:17 PM
SBR has positive meeting with BetRoyal (SBR rating D) Caught in the crossfire is the likeable and professional Kevin K., the new CEO of
Royal. SBR believes given the resources and authority, Kevin K. could revive
Royal from the mismanagement and poor business decisions which he inherited. The meeting between SBR and
Royal had just concluded when SBR learned of slow pays to employees and employees that no longer have advanced schedules but instead are on daily call-in. The relationship between
Royal and MajorBetting was also discussed and SBR is of the opinion that this book has little chance to survive. On a positive note,
Royal indicated they have come to terms with Leo of the MVP group as head linesman. Kevin from
Royal has drastically reduced the amount of office space leased and cut costs in many areas and from SBR's observations, done an excellent job given the business he inherited and the lack of funds.
Royal would not be a slow-pay book if Kevin had the resources to pay on demand. The
Royal investors have poured millions of dollars into
Royal in the last couple of years only to see it mismanaged away.
Royal finally has a CEO worthy of investment and should give this operator a chance. The industry and especially those here in Curacao, should pressure the
Royal ownership to properly fund this operation. Otherwise,
Royal's ability to survive until football is probably no better than 50-50 and may be considerably worse.
5/11/2004 07:30 PM
Royal Sports (SBR rating D), Bowmans (SBR rating A-) SBR previews Bet
Royal's new site currently in beta testing. The new site will be powered by the best current software. SBR very much impressed with the current effort. The new
Royal site to debut by July 1st. Bowmans is scrapping INet software and making a million dollar investment in a Victor Chandler-like software version. SBR viewed software last month in Antigua. This software is no less than revolutionary and will rival ASI as the players favorite software.
4/27/2004 03:20 PM
SBR meets with ex CEO of BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) who personally assures SBR of
Royal Sports solvency - SBR still insists that player funds be verified by a mutually agreed third party
4/21/2004 06:47 PM
In a conference call between SBR and Bet
Royal (SBR rating D-), SBR proposes 3rd party verification of
Royal Sports player escrow fund -
Royal CEO viewed the proposal favorably and will seek ownership approval - SBR provided two prominent names for
Royal to choose from to examine
Royal Sports player escrow bank accounts. SBR promised a complete reevaluation of
Royal including SBR rating consideration upon verification of player funds
4/20/2004 06:28 PM
Anatomy of today's slow pay at
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) -
Update: SBR calls
Royal's CEO Kevin King, who claims customer service made an error and that client will be paid by 04/26, at the latest.
4/19/2004 03:19 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) Removed from the Curacao bookmaker organization CIGA -
Royal Sports likely using player funds to employ shills to attempt to tarnish any site that states the truth about their current fragile condition - Be careful and weary of any contests, advertisement or bonus from this desperate operation
4/14/2004 02:00 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) Costa Rican sources report that
Royal has been in Costa Rica looking for an office or a partner or both - Once a premier sportsbook
Royal Sports continues to struggle with shareholder lawsuits, an active CEO who has supposedly resigned, slow pays to long time clients and an asset sale to mysterious owners who have yet to come forward. SBR warns players that this is a dangerous situation.
Royal's current legal and financial position is uncertain at best.
4/12/2004 05:58 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Bet
Royal claims rights to player's PanAm funds after player meets 10x rollover requirement. This is the e-mail sent to the player by
Royal's CFO, Marco Swart.
4/12/2004 01:18 PM
Player files slow-pay complaint against BetRoyal (SBR Rating D-) SBR Bill Dozer currently in communication with Kevin King,
Royal's Chief Executive, regarding this situation.
4/5/2004 11:14 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D-) Minority shareholders receive "liquidation" letter from the CEO of
Royal. In a letter to
Royal's minority shareholders, lead attorney Daniel D. Zahavi recommends "I only have one advice: instigate legal procedures.." to stop what they believe is a sham. Meanwhile, Roberto C., CEO of
Royal as well as owner of a new SBR imitator site, TheOffshoreWire.com, tells SBR that there are no improprieties. Roberto C. states that the sale is real and that the minority shareholders will get fair value for their ownership.
3/4/2004 12:00 AM
Bet
Royal lowered from D to D-, downgrade to include
Royal owned GamblersAvenue and Lay107
3/2/2004 12:00 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) Tells six-year customer,
Royal acct ID 5708xxxx, it now takes 7 business days to get a FedEx tracking number for a check request
2/25/2004 12:00 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) Postup player still waiting for $40,000(return of deposited funds,
not winnings) which
Royal claims were credited back to players credit cards in mid December - Player's credit card company denies any credits were ever sent by
Royal. Player believes
Royal is lying to him and that the money was never sent - Two new slow pay complaints received this week
2/22/2004 12:00 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) Second instance where big winner can not get paid as
Royal searches, investigates & stalls for a reason to not pay- 1st player waiting 3 months for $90k, 2nd waiting 1 month for $30k
2/21/2004 12:00 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) Reports here in Curacao hint the Dutch ownership group will not make the same kind of investment into
Royal as it made in August of '03 (cash infusion of $1 million) to keep the operation afloat
2/4/2004 05:37 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D) SBR has temporarily removed the SBR report on
Royal shareholder dispute at the request of
Royal Sports shareholders-
Royal majority shareholders to be given opportunity to prepare counter statement
2/4/2004 05:33 AM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D)
Royal shareholders at odds
1/6/2004 05:41 PM
BetRoyal (SBR rating D+) Word of
Royal shareholders threatening lawsuits among themselves draws further SBR downgrade
11/16/2003 10:06 AM
SBR conditionally raises Bet
Royal from a C to a B-. SBR would like
Royal to continue with voluntary disclosure of operating results. SBR would like to be notified within 24 hours of
Royal being served with any legal documents that may result in litigation. Both conditions should be maintained through the end of the year.
11/11/2003 05:12 AM
BetRoyal CEO reassures a skeptical SBR that recently launched Lay107.com and newly acquired GamblersAvenue will not impair
Royal's impressive come back
11/10/2003 05:12 AM
Bet
Royal (SBR rating C) voluntary financial reporting to SBR continues to show strong results - upgrade being considered - If you have any info on
Royal please write in confidence to SBR
7/24/2003 11:25 AM
Bet
Royal -
Royal comeback? or
Royal disaster? SBR
comments
7/10/2003 10:50 AM
BetRoyal Announces" July 10th Plan of Action" - SBR
comments on plan
7/5/2003 10:40 AM
Bet
Royal turmoil continues
- updates
7/1/2003 10:37 AM
Bet
Royal receives SBR downgrade - sale to Olympic now uncertain
- A more detailed evaluation is needed on fractured ownership group - SBR arranging meetings with
Royal mgmt week of 7/21 More
updates on
Royal Sports
7/1/2003 12:00 AM
Olympic - SBR's Financial Rating on Olympic raised to "A" from "A-"(subject to change if
Royal
1/5/2003 11:30 AM
Recommeded List continues to limit exposure to Costa Rica, removes Heritage -
Royal reinstated
after re evaluation
9/10/2002 09:47 AM
SBR warns of downgrade to
Royal if net improvements are not made immediately / CEO assures they will