Sportsbet pays out early on Joe Biden election win
Bookmaker Sportsbet has called the US election early by prematurely paying out people who backed Democratic nominee Joe Biden to win.
In a tweet posted on Thursday morning, Sportsbet said “we’re calling it”.
“We’re paying out early on Joe Biden to win the US election,” the tweet says.
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Biden is projected to win the tight race against rival Donald Trump, with the Democrat needing just six more electoral college votes to claim victory.
If he secures Nevada, he will hit the 270 needed to declare the win.
Sportsbet said it had paid out $23 million but the market was still open for those wanting to place a last-minute bid.
It said in a statement more than 100,000 bets have been paid out to punters who backed Biden to win.
So... I just got paid out by @sportsbetcomau
Does that make it offical? pic.twitter.com/610fu27i4I— Danny Clayton (@DannyjClayton) November 5, 2020
“After CNN projects the state of Michigan would go to the Democrats and holding the ascendancy in Nevada and Arizona, the online bookmaker has deemed the lead unassailable,” the statement added.
With postal votes and potential legal proceedings to play out, it could be weeks before an announcement is officially made. But we’ve seen enough, so why make the punters wait?”
In 2019, Sportsbet made the decision to pay out on Labor two days before the federal election, however it backfired when the Liberal Party claimed victory.
“However, we have supreme confidence that Biden will end up in the Oval Office,” Sportsbet’s Rich Hummerston said.
The betting giant appears to be the only bookmaker site paying out Biden backers.
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