Tony Bloom's betting empire under scrutiny as billionaire gambler denies owing millions to former colleague.
Billionaire owner of Brighton & Hove Albion football club Tony Bloom has denied owing his former colleague Ryan Dudfield millions of pounds, sparking a dispute that has shed light on the largely hidden world of high-stakes betting. According to court documents filed by Bloom's syndicate, a significant portion of the money was placed through the Reform UK adviser George Cottrell's accounts.
Bloom and his team claim that they had an agreement with Dudfield, who is suing him for $17.5 million (£13.1 million), that the winnings would be split between them. However, the billionaire gambler denies owing any further share of the millions made from this arrangement.
In his defence to the legal action, Bloom says that he paid Dudfield a £60,000 "nuisance payment" to settle any claims he had against him in July 2023. He also argues that the agreement between them covered all outstanding claims and Dudfield has no basis for pursuing further compensation.
Dudfield, a professional gambler who introduced Bloom to Cottrell, claims that he thought the arrangement had ended at the end of 2022 because he believed Cottrell had ended his ties with Bloom's syndicate. However, Bloom's defence says that the syndicate continued to place bets through Cottrell up until October 2025, garnering another $2.4 million in net winnings.
The dispute has raised questions about the secretive nature of high-stakes betting operations and whether they use "exotic accounts" that involve other people's identities. Bloom denies using such accounts, but admits to keeping "information barriers" between departments at his syndicate.
Bloom is not only a successful gambler but also a prominent figure in British football, owning Brighton & Hove Albion. The dispute highlights the complexities and risks involved in high-stakes betting and the blurred lines between legitimate business practices and potentially illicit activities.
Billionaire owner of Brighton & Hove Albion football club Tony Bloom has denied owing his former colleague Ryan Dudfield millions of pounds, sparking a dispute that has shed light on the largely hidden world of high-stakes betting. According to court documents filed by Bloom's syndicate, a significant portion of the money was placed through the Reform UK adviser George Cottrell's accounts.
Bloom and his team claim that they had an agreement with Dudfield, who is suing him for $17.5 million (£13.1 million), that the winnings would be split between them. However, the billionaire gambler denies owing any further share of the millions made from this arrangement.
In his defence to the legal action, Bloom says that he paid Dudfield a £60,000 "nuisance payment" to settle any claims he had against him in July 2023. He also argues that the agreement between them covered all outstanding claims and Dudfield has no basis for pursuing further compensation.
Dudfield, a professional gambler who introduced Bloom to Cottrell, claims that he thought the arrangement had ended at the end of 2022 because he believed Cottrell had ended his ties with Bloom's syndicate. However, Bloom's defence says that the syndicate continued to place bets through Cottrell up until October 2025, garnering another $2.4 million in net winnings.
The dispute has raised questions about the secretive nature of high-stakes betting operations and whether they use "exotic accounts" that involve other people's identities. Bloom denies using such accounts, but admits to keeping "information barriers" between departments at his syndicate.
Bloom is not only a successful gambler but also a prominent figure in British football, owning Brighton & Hove Albion. The dispute highlights the complexities and risks involved in high-stakes betting and the blurred lines between legitimate business practices and potentially illicit activities.
And what's up with the secret accounts though? It sounds like something out of a movie... or a bad Bond villain 
I'm just glad it's not affecting my fantasy football team lol 
I'm shocked that people like Tony Bloom can just walk away with millions and not even bother to pay up when they're supposed to. 
His whole argument about a £60,000 "nuisance payment" sounds dodgy to me - who tries to settle a debt with a large sum of cash like that? 
And what really gets my goat is that he's using George Cottrell as a scapegoat to deflect attention from himself. 
It just shows how dirty and underhanded some people can be when they're trying to get away with something. 
Newsflash, bloke: it don't work that way. And what's up with all these "exotic accounts" they use? Sounds like somethin' straight outta a Bond movie 
. Anyway, it's just another day in the world of high-stakes betting, where the rules seem to change like the wind 
. I swear, back in my day... 
. Billionaire gambler tries to weasel out of owing his former colleague millions but it seems like he might be hiding something behind those fancy financial accounts 
.
.
. Can we please just get some clarity on this situation already? It's time for Tony Bloom to come clean and sort out his betting empire once and for all 
.
. I'm not sayin' he did nothin' wrong, but it feels like he's tryin' to pull the wool over peoples eyes.
do we really know what's going on behind closed doors?? 
so i was reading about this tony bloom guy and his betting empire 
and bloom says he paid doodfield 60k to settle any claims 
and a lot of them are using pseudonyms or fake identities 
and 40% don't know their own identities 
. I mean, what kind of business practices are these guys using? Using other people's identities to place bets? That's not even right 
.
