Sports Books Will Likely Refund Your Bet If Game Faces Postponement

Published on October 8th, 2020 8:30 am EST
Written By: Dave Manuel


This is a question that I've seen asked numerous times online over the past couple of days.

What happens to an open bet if a NFL game is postponed due to a Coronavirus outbreak?

In recent weeks, one game (Pittsburgh vs Tennessee) has been pushed back until later in the season, while another game (Kansas City vs New England) was pushed back a couple of days.

What happened to the wagers that were on those games?

The answer, in the case of most sports books? All of the bets are voided and the money is returned to your account.

If you choose to bet on the game again, that is up to you.

Why do they do this?

Let's take a look at two specific cases.

First off, the Pittsburgh vs Tennessee game that was pushed back a number of weeks.

Anything could happen between now and the time that these two teams play in Week 7. There could be a major injury to a player like Juju or Henry. This would obviously have an impact on the odds for the game. Would you be comfortable leaving a big bet in place, given everything that could happen between now and then? Probably not. The sports book feels the same way.

Next up - the Kansas City Chiefs vs New England Patriots game.

The game went ahead one day after schedule, though a very major piece of the Patriots team - starting QB Cam Newton - was unable to play, as he was infected with Coronavirus. This resulted in the odds for the game changing dramatically. If you were betting on a New England upset to happen, odds are that you felt worse about your chances after hearing that Newton wouldn't be playing.

The only fair thing to do with this game was to void all bets and let bettors re-wager on the game if they wanted to.

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In normal circumstances, a sports book will absolutely not void bets if a major player is injured.

In the case of Coronavirus, an exception is made in most cases.

If one of your games is being postponed due to the virus, odds are that your sports book will just void all of the wagers that are on the game.