Settlement rules

These are the rules every bet is settled by. They follow the most common practice among major sportsbooks; where books differ, the rule here is the one chosen. Publish them, or the parts that apply to the markets you offer, as your sportsbook's house rules.

How a result is reached

• A market settles automatically only from a final result the rules understand. When the result sources agree, it settles on that result. With a single source, it settles after a short wait in which no other source disagreed.
• If sources disagree, or a rule cannot decide from the data, the match goes to a trader. It is never settled on a guess.
• A football result is checked against a second, independent result where there is one: the full-time score, the half-time score, and the corners or cards when the match has those markets. If they differ, the match goes to a trader with both readings. If the second result has not come in half an hour after the first, the match settles on the first alone.
• A score that no match could end with (for example 99-0) is treated as a data error and held for a trader.
• A match that has ended but whose final score has not come in yet is asked about again for up to 12 hours, and settles as soon as the score arrives. Only then does it go to a trader. Boxing and MMA wait the same way: the winner of a big promotion's fight is known some time after it, of a small card often never.
• A match the result source removes after it was offered is never voided by itself: it is usually a duplicate listing of the same match. When the source says which listing it was merged into, and that listing has the same sport and sides, the bets settle on its result. Otherwise the match is held for a trader, after up to an hour of asking for a merge.
• A trader's own settlement takes precedence over a later automatic result.
• Amounts are rounded down to the cent, on the final payout only.

General rules

Case	Rule
Whole line lands exactly (handicap −1, won by one; over 2.0 with two goals)	Push: the stake is returned
Half line (−0.5, over 2.5)	Won or lost, never a push
Quarter line (−0.75, over 2.25)	Half the stake on each neighbouring line
Combo with a void leg	That leg counts as odds 1.00; the rest stands
Combo with every leg void	Stake returned
Combo with a half-won leg	That leg counts as (odds + 1) ÷ 2. A half-lost leg counts as 0.5
Dead heat	Stake divided by the number tied, that share paid at full odds
Odds boost	Settled at the boosted price
Cashed-out bet	Final at the cash-out. Later results and corrections do not change it
Same result received twice	Applied once

Postponed, cancelled and awarded matches

A postponed match keeps its bets if it starts within the window below, counted from the original start time. Otherwise every bet on it is void, and the leg counts as 1.00 in combos.

Sport	Window
Football, futsal, eSoccer	24 hours
Basketball, ice hockey, American football, baseball	24 hours
Every other sport	48 hours

A cancelled match or a walkover voids every bet on it. So does an awarded result (for example a 3-0 given by a federation after a forfeit): bets settle only on a result played out.

Matches stopped early

Abandoned, interrupted and retired matches:

• Markets the score had already decided stand. Over 2.5 with three goals already scored is won; both teams to score "Yes" is won once both have scored. Every other market is void.
• Some sports have a minimum played. Past it, the result stands as if the match had finished:

Sport	Result stands after
Basketball (NBA)	43 minutes
Basketball (FIBA and other 40-minute games)	35 minutes
American football	55 minutes
Ice hockey	55 minutes

If the score cannot tell whether the minimum was reached, a trader decides. Football has no minimum: an abandoned match voids every market not already decided, at any minute.

Sport rules

Sport	Rule
Football	Main markets (1X2, totals, handicaps, both teams to score, correct score, clean sheet, win to nil) settle on 90 minutes plus stoppage time. Extra time and penalties are excluded. First-half markets settle on the half-time score, and are void if the match stopped before half time. Corners settle on the official count, no sooner than half an hour after the match's usual end, as counts are still corrected then; with no count, they are void. Cards count yellow and red one each, shown in the 90 minutes and stoppage only; a second yellow counts as a yellow and a red. They settle on the official count with the same half-hour wait; with no count, they are void. Goal markets ("1st goal", "2nd goal"… and the time of the first goal) settle on the goals of the 90 minutes and stoppage in the order the official timeline lists them; an own goal counts for the team credited with it. Each goal's market settles on the team that scored that goal, "No goal" if the match ends without it. The time of the first goal goes by the minute as written: a goal at 45+2 is in 31-45, one at 90+3 in 76-90. When the order of the goals cannot be established, these markets are void; the time of the first goal is void when its minute is not known. Exact goals and winning margin settle on the 90 minutes. The highest scoring half compares the two halves' goals ("Equal" when level) and is void without the half-time score
Basketball	Full-game markets include overtime. First-half markets settle on the first two quarters. Quarter markets settle on that quarter's score alone; the fourth quarter excludes overtime. A quarter not played to its end is void. Winning margin includes overtime
Ice hockey	3-way result, totals and handicaps settle on regulation time (60 minutes). The 2-way money line includes overtime and the shootout. Each period's markets (result and goals) settle on that period alone; a period not played to its end is void. Correct score is the regulation score. The highest scoring period is "Equal" when two or three periods share the most goals
Tennis, padel	A retirement voids the match winner unless the match was completed. Sets already finished stand, and so do games totals already passed. A walkover voids every market A tiebreak in the match is a set that ended 7-6; a match tiebreak does not count. Stopped early, it stands only if a set had already gone to a tiebreak
Cricket	The winner settles automatically when the final score shows it beyond doubt. A tie, a rain-rule result, a match stopped early, or a format without overs is settled by a trader. A final score that arrives without its overs is asked again for up to 12 hours first, as the overs usually follow
Volleyball, table tennis, badminton	Set winners stand for sets already finished. A match winner is void unless the match was completed. Total points and point handicap add up every set's points and are void unless the match was completed
eSoccer, eBasketball	As football and basketball, on the game's own clock. No minimum played
American football	The winner, handicap, totals and winning margin include overtime; a game still level after it voids the winner and the winning margin. First-half markets settle on the half-time score
Handball, futsal, rugby union, rugby league	Regular time only. Extra time and shootouts do not count. First-half markets settle on the half-time score, and are void without it
Baseball	Winner, run line and total include extra innings where the game went to them. The first five innings' markets settle on those innings' runs, a tie standing in the result; void unless all five were played
Esports	Settle on maps won. Map betting, total maps and map handicap count maps, never the rounds or kills inside them. A map's winner market settles on who won that map; a map the series never reaches, or does not finish, is void
Darts, snooker	Correct score, totals and handicaps count what the match is played in: legs or sets in darts, frames in snooker. A match that does not end with the winner on the number to win (a walkover, a retirement) is settled by a person. Darts' 180s and checkout markets settle on the official statistics at the end: most 180s and highest checkout go to the player with more ("Draw" / "Tie" when level), total 180s on both players' 180s together, the highest checkout's over/under on the higher of the two best checkouts. Without the statistics, or when the match is not finished, they are void
Water polo	Regular time only. A cup or play-off game is settled by a trader, as extra time and penalties cannot be separated from regular time in the result

Corrections after settlement

• If the result source corrects a score within 2 hours of settlement, as an ordinary score fix, the bets are settled again automatically. The first payout is taken back and the new one paid; every settlement stays on the bet.
• These wait on Result changes waiting for a decision for a trader to apply or reject:
  • a correction after the 2-hour window;
  • a match whose status changed after it ended (for example to abandoned);
  • a score that went down.
• A leg paid early (early payout) is not settled again.
• After 24 hours, results are no longer checked. Later changes, such as disqualifications or appeals, are ignored.

Bets a trader reviews

These appear on Bets to review. A flag never changes a bet by itself.

• Placed after the result was known. In play, the score reaches the book some seconds after it happens. When a match's score changes, every live bet on it placed in the minute before is flagged. This covers football, futsal, eSoccer, ice hockey, American football, baseball and rugby. The trader dismisses the flag with a reason, or voids the bet.
• Settled under changed rules. Every settlement rule has a version. A bet records the version in force when it was placed; a result records the version that settled it. If a rule changed in between, the bet settles as usual and is flagged, so a trader can settle it as the old rule would have.

A price offered in error is handled with Void bets placed in a window — see Running the book.

Every decision in this section is recorded with the trader's name and reason.

Outrights

Competition markets, such as a league's winner or its top scorer, are made and priced by a trader. Bets close at the time shown on the market.

• All in, run or not. A selection that withdraws, is knocked out, folds or is expelled loses. Its bets stand and are not void.
• Ties are dead heats. When selections tie for the place, the stake is divided by the number tied and that share is paid at full odds. For example, 10 at 3.00 on one of two joint winners pays (10 ÷ 2) × 3.00 = 15.00.
• The official result at the end. An outright settles on the result declared when the competition ends. Later changes, such as appeals, points deductions or titles stripped, are ignored.
• Abandoned competitions. If the competition is abandoned with no winner declared, every bet is void.

Free bets

A free bet is a stake the operator gives a player to bet with. It settles by the rules above, with these differences:

• The stake is not returned. A winning free bet pays its winnings only: a free bet of 10 at 3.00 pays 20.00, not 30.00.
• Staked whole, on one bet. A free bet cannot be split, used on a system bet or a boosted price, or cashed out.
• Void gives it back. If the bet is void, the player gets the free bet back, valid for at least seven more days. If a correction later settles that bet as won or lost, the returned free bet is withdrawn, if it has not been used.
• Minimum odds. A free bet may require minimum total odds for the bet it is used on.
• Expiry. An unused free bet lapses at its expiry time.
• No combo boost. A combo staked with a free bet earns no combo boost.

Combo boost

Where the operator offers it, a winning combo pays more on its winnings the more legs it has. Each leg must be at or above the operator's lowest odds to count (1.30 unless the operator sets another). The operator's ladder sets the percentage, for example 3 legs +5%, 4 legs +7%, 5 legs +10%, 6 legs +15%, 8 legs +20% and 10 legs +30%.

• Winnings only. The boost is added to the winnings, never to the stake: 10 on a five-fold at 2.00 a leg (total 32.00) wins 310.00; with +10% it wins 341.00 and pays 351.00.
• Combos only. Singles, bet builders, system bets and free bets earn no boost.
• Void legs drop out. If a leg is void, the percentage is that of the legs left. In the example above, one void leg leaves four legs at +7%: 10 × 16.00 = 160.00, winnings 150.00 plus 7% = 160.50, paying 170.50.
• Fixed when placed. A bet keeps the ladder in force when it was placed, whatever the operator changes later.
• Cash out. A cash out offer does not include the boost.

Acca insurance

Where the brand offers it, a combo of enough legs that loses on one leg only gives its stake back as a free bet.

• Qualifying. At least the brand's number of legs (5 by default), each at its lowest odds or more (1.30 by default). Shown on the betslip.
• When it pays. Exactly one leg lost and every other leg won. A void leg drops out, and the legs left must still qualify. A half-lost leg does not count as the one.
• What it gives. A free bet of the stake, up to the brand's cap (in other currencies at the day's rate), valid for the brand's number of days (7 by default).
• Timing. A covered combo lost on one leg stays open until its other legs are settled.
• Not available on free bets, singles, bet builders and system bets. A cashed-out bet is not covered.
• Corrections. If a corrected result means the combo no longer qualifies, an unused free bet from it is withdrawn.
• A bet keeps the rules it was placed under.

Partial cash out

Where the brand offers it, a player can cash out part of an open bet: 25%, 50% or 75% of its stake.

• What it pays. That share of the bet's cash out value at that moment.
• What stays. The rest of the stake rides on at the same odds and settles as usual. A bet can be cashed out in part more than once, and in full at the end.
• Final. A partial cash-out is never reversed, even if the bet's result is corrected later.
• Not available on free bets, bet builders and system bets, as for a full cash out.

Early payout (2 up)

Where the brand offers it, a pre-match bet on a football team to win the match (Fulltime Result 1 or 2) is paid as a win as soon as that team leads by two goals.

• When it pays. The two-goal lead must stand for 90 seconds. A goal taken back after a video review, or a score shown wrongly for a moment, pays nothing.
• Singles are settled and paid at that moment. In a combo the leg counts as won and the combo waits for its other legs.
• Final. The leg stays won whatever the match ends at, a draw or a defeat included, and whatever correction comes later. Only a trader voiding the leg changes it, for example for a price offered in error.
• Which bets. Bets placed before kick-off on 1 or 2. Not the draw, bets placed in play, bet builders or boosted prices. A bet keeps the terms it was placed under: if the brand turns the offer off, bets already taken keep it.
• Price. The offer is priced into the brand's 1 and 2, which are slightly shorter than without it: a little for a favourite, more for an outsider.

Not offered yet

Player markets, each-way and racing do not have rules here. Their rules will be added when the markets are offered.