 | |
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Gambling |
| Founded | 1946 |
| Founder | William Chandler |
| Headquarters | |
Key people | Andreas Meinrad (CEO), Victor Chandler (Former Chairman) |
| Products | Sports betting, online casino |
| Website | www |
BetVictor is an online gambling company based in Gibraltar. Founded in 1946, it provides services such as sports betting and online casinos. The enterprise is currently under the ownership of the British businessman and racehorse owner Michael Tabor.
History
The company was founded by William Chandler, the proprietor of Walthamstow Stadium, a greyhound racing track located in the London Borough of Waltham Forest in East London, which he inaugurated in 1931.[1] Victor Sr. and Jack took over the bookmaking business following William Chandler's passing in 1946. Victor Sr. died unexpectedly in 1974, and his son Victor Jr., who was then employed in the hospitality industry in Spain, assumed control of the business.
In 1998, the headquarters relocated to Gibraltar to avoid the UK gambling taxes.[2] Some have suggested this was a factor in the decision to abolish the gambling tax in Gordon Brown's 2001 budget.[3]
The company underwent a rebranding in 2004, changing its name to "VC Bet", but eventually reverted to "Victor Chandler" in late 2008.[4] In 2012, to ensure consistency and recognition across international markets, the company underwent another rebranding and adopted the name "BetVictor".[5] In May 2014, Michael Tabor, a businessman and major shareholder of Victor Chandler International, assumed control of the company.[6]
In September 2021, BetVictor disclosed its collaboration with Quantum Metric aimed at advancing and enhancing consumer-centric products.[7]
Sponsorship
BetVictor has sponsored several sporting events over the years, most notably in horse racing, with the grade 1 listed Clarence House Chase at Ascot, which was titled the Victor Chandler Chase from its inauguration in 1989 to 2013. The company also sponsored the Queen Mother Champion Chase during the Cheltenham Festival in 2014, the BetVictor Gold Cup at Cheltenham from 2016 to 2019,[8] the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle in 2018,[9] and had a multi-fixture partnership with Newbury Racecourse consisting of 41 individual races in 2021–2022.[10]
In other sports, BetVictor has sponsored the Welsh Open snooker, the World Matchplay darts, Liverpool F.C.,[11] and Fulham F.C.[12]
BetVictor business-to-business
In 2020, German newspaper BILD confirmed that it had started a cooperation with BetVictor to launch BildBet.[13] Later in 2020, BetVictor made an agreement with Parimatch to be their white label provider in the UK.[14] On September 9, 2021, BetVictor announced a partnership with Global Media & Entertainment to relaunch HeartBingo, their UK gaming brand.[15] In August 2022, BetVictor partnered with talkSPORT to launch a new UK sports betting brand, talkSPORT BET.[16]
Regulatory actions
In February 2022 BetVictor faced a £2 million (€2.4/$2.7 million) regulatory action after the UK Gambling Commission investigation revealed fairness, social responsibility, and anti-money laundering failures.[17] The operator will pay the money as part of a settlement with the commission, and the settlement money will go to the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms.[18]
In 2023, the UK Advertising Standards Authority investigated a BetVictor Facebook ad featuring images of FC Barcelona players Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets. They ruled that the advert had breached the code of practice as it was likely to have a strong appeal to under-18s.[19]
References
- ↑ Genders, Roy (1990). NGRC book of Greyhound Racing. Pelham Books Ltd. ISBN 0-7207-1804-X.
- ↑ "Betting on Gibraltar". BBC News. 14 May 1999. Retrieved 27 May 2010.
- ↑ "UK could become internet gambling leader". Pinsent Masons. Out-Law News. 14 March 2001. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
- ↑ "VC Bet reverts back to Victor Chandler". Archived from the original on 6 January 2009. Retrieved 22 January 2009.
- ↑ BetVictor. "Victor Chandler to Rebrand as BetVictor in the UK". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ↑ "Michael Tabor takes over BetVictor from Chandler | Horse Racing News | Racing Post". 23 May 2014. Archived from the original on 23 May 2014.
- ↑ "BetVictor Partners with Quantum Metric for the next step towards player-centricity". Cision PR Newswire. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ↑ "BetVictor new sponsor of Cheltenham Gold Cup > Australia and International Horse Racing news updated daily". www.thoroughbrednews.com.au. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- ↑ "BetVictor Sponsor Newcastle's Principle Jump Race | ARC". www.newcastle-racecourse.co.uk. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- ↑ Ltd, Indzine. "BetVictor Announced as New Sponsor of BetVictor 'Greatwood' Gold Cup in Multi-Fixture Partnership with Newbury Racecourse". Newbury Racecourse. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- ↑ "LFC announces BetVictor as a principal partner". 1 July 2016. Friday, 1 July 2016
- ↑ "Fulham swaps betting operators in new shirt deal with BetVictor". 7 September 2020. Monday, 7 September 2020
- ↑ "BetVictor and BILD form german power couple with launch of BILDBet". 1 January 2020. Wednesday, 1 January 2020
- ↑ "BetVictor Take Parimatch Under Their Wing For UK Launch". 1 August 2020. Saturday, 1 August 2020
- ↑ "BetVictor Announces Partnership with Heart Bingo". 9 September 2021. Wednesday, 9 September 2021
- ↑ "BetVictor Group Announces Brand Partnership with talkSPORT". 11 August 2022. Thursday, 11 August 2022
- ↑ "Online gambling business faces £2m regulatory action - Gambling Commission". 24 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
- ↑ Barber, Bill (24 February 2022). "BetVictor to pay £2m after Gambling Commission investigation into rule breaches". Racing Post. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
- ↑ Clarke, Josie (18 April 2023). "BetVictor ad banned for featuring footballers popular with under-18s". The Independent. Retrieved 26 April 2023.