Throughout history, several unforeseen events have been known to disrupt the schedule of sports events. These events can suddenly get delayed, abandoned, postponed, or cancelled, preventing games from taking place as scheduled. The reasons for this range from severe weather conditions and accidents to threats, the emergence of an epidemic, and more.
For bettors, such disruptions raise the question of “what happens to bets when it happens?” Therefore, this article dives deep into the specifics of what happens to your wagers when a game gets postponed or cancelled.
What Happens When a Game Gets Postponed?
In most cases, wagers on cricket betting online, football, horse racing, and other sports typically stand when a game is postponed. However, this is only if the event will be played out at some future date.
Most sportsbooks typically set specific rules and timeframes within which postponed games must play out for the bet to remain active. This period typically ranges from 24 to 48 hours after the original start time but can extend longer depending on the sports or betting site. Once the event plays out on the new date, the bet gets settled based on the prediction and outcome.
On the other hand, the rules are different if the postponed game isn’t rescheduled quickly or the event is slated to take place much further in the future. In this case, most sportsbooks will void such bets and refund bettors’ full stake.
What Happens When an Event Gets Cancelled?
On rare occasions, sports betting events scheduled to take place at a certain date can be cancelled without any quick redress as to a future rescheduling. In such cases, most betting sites generally void any bets on cancelled games. Bookmakers refund bettors’ stakes, so there is no profit or loss on the wager.
What Happens to Bets on Abandon Sports Events
On very rare occasions, sporting events that are already underway get abandoned before the regular time is over. This can happen due to severe weather conditions like heavy rainfall, making the pitch no longer conducive for players to continue.
Most sports betting sites void all bets placed on such abandoned matches and return bettors’ stakes to them. The same rule usually applies to suspended sports games as long as the match doesn’t get restarted and completed on the same day.
However, if the outcome of the bet has already been determined before the abandonment, the bet will stand as it is. For example, if you bet on the first goalscorer and there have been two goals in the game already, your bet will settle as a win or loss, depending on whether your prediction proves accurate.
What Happens to My Accumulator Wager if a Game Gets Cancelled?
Undeniably, the accumulator wager is the go-to choice for many sports betting enthusiasts today. After all, by combining multiple selections, you can get bigger odds and payouts than you would with single wagers. So, what happens when one or more games within an accumulator get cancelled?
Essentially, if one or more games within an accumulator get cancelled, only that selection(s) gets affected —it won’t void the entire accumulator. Instead, the odds on the accumulator will readjusted, and the payout will be recalculated based on the remaining legs, leaving the bet active to play out and settle.
For example, let’s say you place a $10 wager on a 6-leg parlay with odds “2.3, 2.5, 1.5, 1.9, 3.5, and 1.2,” resulting in combined odds of 68.82 and a potential payout of $688.2.
Now, should the event of the first selection with “2.3” odds get cancelled, you get left with just “2.5, 1.5, 1.9, 3.5, and 1.2” with a combined odds of 29.95 and a potential payout of $299.5. This will stay active and play out to settle.
Conclusion
While it is no longer as rampant as it was decades ago, sports events can be disrupted by postponement, abandonment, or cancellation. These cases usually affect the potential outcome of bettors’ wagers, resulting in a delayed settlement, void bet, etc.
You should note that while the premises are usually similar, the rules regarding what happens to bets on postponed, abandoned, or cancelled games typically vary. This means that depending on the sportsbook you wager on, you may be subject to slightly different rules. So, it’s important to check the terms and conditions of your preferred sports betting site before joining.
