Sorare pleads not guilty to unlicensed gambling charges as trial date set
NFT fantasy football platform has insisted it is not guilty of breaching sections 33 and 36 of the Gambling Act 2005 as it claims Gambling Commission has “misunderstood our business”
Sorare has pleaded not guilty to three charges of providing unlicensed gambling activities to British consumers brought to Birmingham Magistrates’ Court by the Gambling Commission.
The France-based NFT fantasy football platform submitted the not guilty pleas through its barrister at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court on the morning of Friday 4 October, ahead of a trial set to take place next year at the same court.
The trial is scheduled for 16 June 2025 and is expected to last seven days, after Sorare was accused of offering “a remote facility for gambling to consumers within Great Britain, without holding a licence” in three separate periods between 7 February 2022 and 5 April 2024.
In Friday’s brief hearing, Sorare’s representatives argued that the company does not need a licence to operate in the UK, on the grounds that it does not offer gambling facilities to UK users.
Last week, the Gambling Commission had deemed Sorare to have fallen foul of sections 33 and 36 of the Gambling Act 2005.
The penalties for such breaches range from fines to potential prison sentences, if the company is found guilty.
Section 33 (4) of the act outlines that a person found guilty of an offence in illegally providing facilities for gambling could face imprisonment for a term not exceeding 51 weeks, an unlimited fine, or both.
Section 36 (3, 3a) of the Act relate to the provisions of facilities for remote gambling defined as “at least one piece of remote gambling equipment used in the provision of the facilities is situated in Great Britain”.
As per a statement made last week, a Sorare spokesman explained: “We are aware of the claims made by the Gambling Commission and have instructed our UK counsel to challenge them.
“We firmly deny any claims that Sorare is a gambling product under UK laws.
“The commission has misunderstood our business and wrongly determined that gambling laws apply to Sorare. We cannot comment further whilst legal proceedings are under way.”
Sorare, which has been a partner of the Premier League since January 2023, is a fantasy football platform that allows users to collect and trade digital assets and NFTs with one another.
The business has been under investigation by the Gambling Commission since October 2021, with the regulator aiming to determine whether the company required a licence and if its services equated to gambling.
Soon after, the Gambling Commission issued a consumer information notice urging caution to players considering signing up to Sorare.
The firm boasts a lengthy, star-studded list of brand ambassadors, investors and advisors, including Lionel Messi, Serena Williams, Zinedine Zidane, Gerard Pique, Rudy Gobert and Blake Griffin.