Brazilian Court Orders bet365 to Pay Disputed Assist Bets

A court in São Paulo ordered operator bet365 to pay out winnings on assist bets placed on two Italian Serie A football matches, according to a post by plaintiff's attorney Bruno Rodrigues on his X profile. The operator had settled the bets as losses, declining to classify the disputed plays as assists despite the player submitting official match reports and video footage of the moments in question.

In its defense, bet365 cited data from sports statistics provider Opta, whose classification did not count the disputed plays as assists. The court, however, found that the dispute was not about Opta's data itself, but about the operator's failure to provide technical justification for the criteria applied, stating that a bare reference to a data provider's classification is insufficient. The court ruled that operators must objectively explain why a specific play does not meet assist criteria, and since bet365 failed to provide such justification, the court found the service had been improperly rendered.

The ruling establishes a notable precedent regarding operators' burden of proof when settling disputed bets based on third-party statistical classifications, suggesting that simply citing a data provider's determination may not be sufficient defense against a player's documented challenge to a specific settlement decision in Brazilian courts.