Bodog Press Release - survivor betting

May 12, 2003

Bodog puts Survivor scandal to rest and offers odds on CBS' Amazing Race 4

Nearly six weeks ago Bodog Sportsbook, Casino and Poker was forced to stop accepting wagers on Survivor 6: The Amazon after discovering CBS employees were wagering on the outcome.

While many members of the media questioned the authenticity of the story, Sunday's final episode of Survivor 6 proved, once and for all, that CBS employees were in fact using insider knowledge to profit.

"We had no doubts about these people being employees of CBS. Our investigation made it quite clear that these people were working with the network," said Bodog President, Rob Gillespie. "The accounts in question had been correct on the previous two shows in wagering on the eventual final two survivors. This time they were wagering on Matt and Jenna."

And, to the surprise of nobody at Bodog, the two final contestants on the show were Matt and Jenna, with Jenna eventually taking the $1-million prize. Jenna was originally a 12/1 longshot.

After the story broke CBS' only official comment was "Only The X-Files has more conspiracy theories than Survivor." However, CBS lawyers were in touch with Bodog within days asking the International Sportsbook to reveal the names of the employees.

"While we have rules and regulations we expect our players to adhere to, they also have certain expectations as to the privacy of their account information," said Gillespie. "We politely informed CBS that we would not violate our players privacy and provide names or any other details. We cancelled their wagers and closed their accounts, that was enough for us."

The players in question never contacted Bodog to find out why their wagers had been cancelled and accounts closed.

"We weren't happy with having to stop accepting wagers on an event," said Gillespie. "While we don't want to leave ourselves exposed to this sort of thing again, we have a commitment to our players."

After reviewing policies for wagering on Non-Sporting events, Bodog has posted odds on another CBS-produced reality show, The Amazing Race 4.

"The fact is, our players really like to wager on reality television," said Gillespie. "It adds something to the viewing experience to have a few dollars riding on it."

Bodog has since lowered the maximum wager on Non-Sporting Events to $100.

The Amazing Race 4 begins airing on CBS on May 29th. When the odds were posted this morning two teams were listed as 4/1 favorites.

David and Jeff, best friends from Manhattan Beach, CA and Monica and Sheree, from Duluth, GA are considered the front-runners to win.

"Monica and Sheree are wives of NFL players and look to be in great physical condition," said Gillespie. "The team of David and Jeff look to be in good shape, not too young and not too old."

"Both teams look very strong and seem to have the right attributes to be successful," said Gillespie who indicated he had no fears about CBS employees using insider knowledge on this show for profit.

"We feel pretty confident that they won't be back," said Gillespie. "But if we see something out of the ordinary again, we'll be sure to investigate."

To view the odds for The Amazing Race 4 click HERE.