DraftKings attempted to revoke MLB-related bets worth $93,413.7 due to an internal configuration error, but the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) unanimously rejected this, ruling that the operator must fully pay out the winnings. This incident exposed vulnerabilities in the sports betting platform's system, and related sports betting regulatory rulings can be queried on the PASA official website.
Cause of the Incident: Internal Error Leads to "Related Betting"
This mistake could cost DraftKings dearly! During the 2025 MLB American League Championship Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners, the platform's trading tool mistakenly marked Blue Jays outfielder Nathan Lux as a "non-participating player," bypassing the mechanisms to prevent combined bets on correlated outcomes. A Massachusetts player took advantage of this to place 27 multi-leg parlay bets, covering various thresholds like Lux 5+, 6+, 7+, 8+ hits, with only $12,950 invested. Ultimately, Lux hit 9 out of 7 games, and 24 bets met the payout conditions.
Regulatory Decision: Operator's Responsibility, Partial Revocation Request Denied
The regulatory body showed no mercy! The MGC passed the resolution unanimously with a 5:0 vote, deeming the betting process legal and valid, and the error entirely on DraftKings, rejecting its request to "only retain the 8+ hits bets and revoke the rest." Regulatory Commissioner Erin O'Brien criticized DraftKings for baselessly accusing the player of unethical behavior or even fraud, emphasizing that "taking advantage of operator errors is not illegal" and demanded consumer rights be protected.
Variations in State Handling: New Jersey Pays in Full, Pennsylvania Allows Revocation
The handling methods vary significantly between states! The New Jersey regulatory authority also rejected DraftKings' revocation request, requiring it to pay out $1.8 million in winnings to 6 players who had only bet $44,000; whereas Pennsylvania, based on the operator's internal rules, allowed the revocation of similar bets, involving less than $10,000. Together, these states have required DraftKings to pay nearly $3 million in winnings due to this error.
Follow-up Actions: DraftKings Corrects System, Expands Prediction Market
DraftKings has acknowledged that the error originated internally and was unrelated to third-party data providers, and has since removed the related markets and fixed the system vulnerabilities. Notably, during the incident, DraftKings was actively expanding its business boundaries, launching the independent prediction app DraftKings Predictions on December 19 in 38 states, focusing on sports event contract trading, regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), not state-level gambling agencies.
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This article is from "PASA-Global iGaming Leader," a gambling industry news channel:https://t.me/pasa_news
Original in-depth gambling channel:https://t.me/gamblingdeep
Free data reports: @pasa_research
PASA Matrix: @pasa002_bot
PASA official website: https://www.pasa.news
