Sweden's Administrative Court of Appeal upheld earlier rulings that Hillside, the parent company of Bet365, breached player protection obligations under Swedish gambling law. The decision covers two Hillside subsidiaries: Hillside (Gaming) and Hillside (Sports).
The court confirmed penalties of SEK 4 million for the gaming division and SEK 40 million for sports betting. The breaches span 2019 to 2022. Regulators found Hillside reacted too slowly to signs of excessive play. Under Swedish law, operators must continuously monitor activity and intervene to prevent harm. Hillside relied on automated alerts and delayed escalation to manual review, sometimes taking nearly a month before tightening restrictions despite continued risky behaviour.
From January 2019 to April 2022, the platform offered a 'no limit' deposit option that allowed players to bypass daily, weekly and monthly caps required by law. Though a technical ceiling of SEK 500 million existed, players were not informed of it or treated as a limit. The court rejected Hillside's arguments that its risk detection system was effective and that the regulator's intervention timelines were unclear. The sports betting penalty was reduced from SEK 65 million on first instance; the gaming unit penalty stood below the regulator's initial proposal.
