Former rugby player tells Australian Senate iGaming operators offered VIP clients drugs

Luke Bateman spent time as a professional player for the Canberra Raiders before becoming a heavy bettor, and he told the committee that a single account manager handled his relationship with an operator throughout that period — arranging bonus credits, flying him to invite-only events, and covering hotel stays, meals, and drinks along the way.

The account manager’s offers went further than hospitality, according to Bateman: ahead of some of those trips, he says he was also given access to illegal substances. Bateman reads the pattern as calculated — a way to keep a high-spending customer emotionally tied to the brand and betting more as a result.

VIP host programs like this aren’t unique to Australia. Inquiries in the UK have documented similar setups before: a dedicated staffer tracks a big spender’s activity and keeps intervening with perks, sometimes continuing well past the point where rising losses would normally trigger a responsible-gambling check rather than another gift.

A second account came from Tim Costello, who runs the Alliance for Gambling Reform. He told senators about a different customer — one he identified as the top-spending client at both TAB and Sportsbet — and the perks followed the same playbook: promotional credit, covered travel, whatever came bundled with VIP status at that level. That same man is now facing criminal charges for allegedly stealing more than A$12 million ($8.4 million) to fund gambling losses. Costello’s implication is direct: the client worth flying out for a weekend and the client whose habit eventually became a theft case can be the exact same person.

Both operators pushed back. Sportsbet said it hasn’t seen anything backing up the allegations, described its policy on this kind of conduct as zero-tolerance, and asked whoever has evidence to submit it. TAB’s response was narrower: a spokesperson said none of what’s being described is part of how the company runs its client programs.