Sportsbet.com.au has won their court case against Racing NSW over how fees for race fields are charged by the ruling body.
Justice Nye Perram ruled in the Federal Court that although the race fields legislation was valid, the methods used to collect the 1.5 per cent turnover fee discriminated against Sportsbet with NSW bookmakers not required to pay until they reached a $5 million threshold.
Justice Perram ordered Racing NSW to pay back more than $2 million to Sportsbet.
Racing NSW’s arrangement with Tabcorp also came under attack with the administrator refunding the fee to the wagering giant under the terms of a 1997 agreement.
Betfair had argued that the 1.5 per cent turnover fee discriminated against low-margin operators such as itself, but that was rejected by the court.
Racing NSW chairman Alan Brown said the ruling body would consider its legal avenues of appeal and would also enter into talks with Betfair and the bookmakers to come to an agreement.
