As the new year brings in a fresh wave of gambling-related stories, its time to reflect on the year that has been and gone. From soccer players breaking betting rules to poker players embroiled in cheating scandals, 2022 had it all.
VegasSlotsOnline News has taken a look through its stories from the past year to find ten articles that seemed to peak the interest of readers the most. So clear away the champagne bottles and clean up the confetti, its time for the VSO News 2022 roundup.
10. FA Charges Ivan Toney With Hundreds of Gambling Rules Violations
English Premier League striker Ivan Toney made the headlines for all the wrong reasons last year. The Brentford player stands accused of committing more than 200 betting offences over the course of his professional soccer career.
the offenses took place between February 2017 and January 2021
According to the Football Association (FA), the offenses took place between February 2017 and January 2021. The striker made appearances for Scunthorpe United, Wigan Athletic, Peterborough United, and Brentford during that time. All of the leagues he participated in fell under the regulation of the FA.
Toney – who is yet to respond to the charges – has confirmed that he intends to cooperate fully with the FA’s investigation. He now has until January 4 to submit his formal response to the accusations.
In the past, the FA has come down hard on betting regulation offenders, from issuing fines to banning players from playing for multiple years.
9. DraftKings to Refund $300k in Lost Funds Amid Sportsbook Hacking Storm
DraftKings’ share price plummeted again over the course of 2022. The US sportsbook giant topped the list of VSO News’ biggest stock drops for the year, and investors can certainly thank a $300,000 refund as one reason for the decline in price.
In November, the operator announced it would issue the refund to customers after a flood of hacking reports. The DraftKings News Twitter account shared the update:
The company said that its systems weren’t actually compromised, instead asserting that hackers had breached customers’ logins on other websites. They then supposedly used the information to gain access to the DraftKings accounts. FanDuel customers were also affected by the data breach.
More recently, BetMGM confirmed that its customers also fell victim to the data breach. The operator said it had no reason to believe hackers were able to access account funds or the passwords of its users.
8. Boyd Gaming Begins $50m Renovation of Fremont Casino in Las Vegas
Boyd Gaming’s Fremont Hotel and Casino is a classic sight in downtown Las Vegas. Now, the operator is giving its casino a $50m makeover, announced during a fourth-quarter release in February last year.
a wider company strategy to spend $250m on capital projects
Most of the renovation will relate to the food and beverage areas of the property. However, the casino floor is also getting an enhancement, with major renovations to the gaming space. The plan was part of a wider company strategy to spend $250m on capital projects over the course of 2022.
Boyd CEO and president Keith Smith expressed his excitement for the multimillion-dollar move. He said: “Based on the demand we’re already seeing at the Fremont, we expect to see excellent returns from this investment following its completion in early 2023.”
7. Poker Pro Garrett Adelstein Cries Cheat After ‘Impossible’ Call in Hustler Casino Live
Last year proved a big one for poker news, and no story caused as many arguments as the cheating scandal of Robbi Jade Lew.
High-stakes legend Garrett ‘GMan’ Adelstein accused Lew of cheating after she called his three-bet all in shove to win a pot of $269,000 with just a J-high. Streamed live on Hustler Casino Live, Adelstein’s confusion at Lew’s unbelievable call was clear to see:
GMan took to social media to fire accusations of cheating at Lew. Despite securing a refund of his $135,000, Adelstein listed multiple ways in which Lew could have made the “impossible” call, including using technology to hack into the card reader.
The internet detectives quickly saw their opportunity and poker Twitter was flooded with analysis videos. A Hustler Casino investigation has since revealed no signs of cheating, causing some to deem Adelstein the “worst person in poker.”
Poker pros David Lappin and Dara O’Kearney both gave their take on the issue in October.
6. Red Bull F1 Car Does a Drive-Through of Wynn Casino in Las Vegas
If you listed the sights you wouldn’t expect while playing slots in a Las Vegas casino, seeing an F1 car pass by would probably be high up on the list. That’s just what happened to gamblers at the Wynn Las Vegas in November last year as part of a promotion for the upcoming Grand Prix in the US gambling capital.
The Red Bull-sponsored F1 car drove through the Wynn on a busy Thursday evening. Adding to the excitement, Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell also came to town for the Las Vegas Grand Prix launch party.
The 3.8-mile Las Vegas circuit will join the F1 schedule for next season. In the heart of downtown Vegas, the loop track will showcase monuments, hotels, and casinos. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has agreed a $19.5m sponsorship deal with the racing championship.
5. PokerStars and GGPoker Escalate the War on Cheaters
Cheating scandals have constantly caused friction in the world of professional poker but they are on the rise due to growth of online play and improvement in cheating technology. GGPoker decided it was time to do something about it last year through the creation of the Poker Integrity Council (PIC).
dropping the hammer on high-profile offenders
The PIC consists of Jason Koon, Andrew, Lichtenberger, Fedor Holz, Seth Davies, and Nick Petrangelo. It aims to combat unethical play by dropping the hammer on high-profile offenders. With many within the community calling for an industry-wide blacklist of cheating players, the PIC decided to share the names of those it ruled against playing its live tours.
Meanwhile, PokerStars has also taken aim at cheaters by confirming it will ban offenders from live games. The operator is rumored to have turned away supposed cheaters Ali Imsirovic and Jake Schindler from its EPT Monte Carlo in April. Both played just one event at the start of the festival before making their exit.
4. Dara O’Kearney – The Reason Most People Lose Playing Poker
Ever wondered why you struggle to make any headway in your poker career? Last year, Irish poker pro Dara O’Kearney – who has total live earnings of $1.2m and online winnings of $3.8m – explained exactly why most people lose when playing poker.
you just have to know the right questions and people to ask”
Among his teachings, O’Kearney focused on the need for a “meticulous approach” and the benefits of surrounding yourself with experts. “The key is not that you have to know everything: you just have to know the right questions and people to ask,” he explained.
Added to this, the Irish pro delved into the typical errors of recreational players, including commenting on their play and that of the other players at the table. He also explained “the real secret” to his successful online career and why so many players who win live struggle to transfer it to the virtual space.
3. Slot Twitch Streamer Trainwreck Takes Aim at Roshtein in Transparency Rant
The world of Twitch gambling made the VSO News headlines a lot last year. The controversy ultimately proved too much for Amazon-owned Twitch, which banned unregulated gambling content from the platform in October. The slots category subsequently lost 97% of its viewership and top streamers like Trainwreck and Roshtein transitioned to new platform Kick:
Much earlier in the year, however, the gambling streaming community was polarized when Trainwreck and Roshtein butted heads. Trainwreck, real name Tyler Niknam, accused Roshtein of lying to his followers regarding his profits and losses. In a Twitter rant, he claimed Roshtein was “selling a false reality” by “showing gambling as profitable every day.”
Trainwreck drew particular attention to a table of Roshtein’s profits over the previous three weeks that showed the streamer was up $32.5m. Notably, that same month Roshtein won his largest jackpot ever of $16m from one slot spin.
2. Parlay Bettor Cashes Out $283,538 on France World Cup Wager
Towards the end of 2022, the FIFA World Cup in Qatar gave us some wild stories. Morocco became the first African nation to make it all the way to the semis, Lionel Messi finally got his hands on the most prestigious trophy in soccer, and one bettor in the US added a six-figure payday to his bank account thanks to a timely cash-out.
seven-leg futures parlay
VSO News followed the wager of Daniel Forte closely over the course of the tournament. With a stake of $26, his seven-leg futures parlay included different sports and leagues across the world. Among his correct predictions, he forecasted that Manchester City would win the English Premier League and the Kansas Jayhawks would win March Madness.
All Forte needed was for France to win the World Cup to make $557,000. He refused several cash-out offers from FanDuel during the tournament, including an $83,000 offer in the late stages. Forte ultimately cashed out at just the right time, securing a payday of $283,538 just before France lost to Argentina in the final:
1. Annie Duke: From Disgraced Poker Player to Decision Scientist (Whatever That Is)
Poker player Annie Duke has been associated with multiple scandals throughout her career. In 2010, she parted ways with UlimateBet in the wake of a cheating scam by Russ Hamilton, with it generally rumored that she knew of his wrongdoings. The following year, her reputation lay in tatters when her Epic Poker League filed for bankruptcy.
drew the ire of many within the poker community
Duke has since launched a career as an author of books on the topic of decision-making. Last year, she took this one step further by announcing her new role as “First Round’s Special Partner, focused on Decision Science.” It’s a move that drew the ire of many within the poker community, the likes of Jason Strasser and Isaac Haxton taking aim at Duke via Twitter.
In his coverage of Duke last year, VSO News writer and Irish poker pro David Lappin explained why so many have taken issue with Duke’s new role. “The bottom line is Duke did real damage to people through her various roles in the poker industry,” he wrote.