Does your Office World Cup Sweepstake Score an Own Goal?

Eve Aycock, trainee advocate of M&P Legal, reviews how this workplace bit of fun might contravene Manx gambling and other laws

With the 2022 FIFA World Cup underway in Qatar, an office sweepstake is a popular means to celebrate the quadrennial tournament and encourage staff cohesion. Such a sweepstake involves each party putting cash in, randomly selecting a country participating in the World Cup and the winner receiving the pot of money. However, it is possible that a humble office sweepstake may violate gambling regulations and/or equality laws.

Private Lotteries

The term ‘gambling’ has a much broader meaning than spending a night at the casino. Under the Gambling (Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism) Act 2018 of Tynwald, ‘gambling’ can mean:-

• Gaming;
• Making, negotiating and receiving bets and wagers;
• Organising, managing, promoting or participating in a lottery; or
• Supplying or operating controlled machines.

An office sweepstake falls within the category of a private lottery, being a lottery which is promoted for and in which the sale of tickets or chances by the organisers is confined to those working on the same premises. A licence is not required for such lotteries.

The key point is that all participants in the sweepstake must work in the same office premises. Contests running across different office locations of the same company are not allowed. Nor is it allowed for fully remote workers to participate, as whilst they are at the same company they are not at the same premises.

Given the novelty of the hybrid working phenomenon, it is unclear as to whether hybrid workers are permitted to participate in an office sweepstake. It is likely that they would be allowed to participate provided that the conditions relating to provision of tickets and advertisement of the lottery are followed. Those involved in organising the sweepstake should be cautious of these points.

The Conditions

The legality of an office sweepstake is subject to stringent conditions in Section 30 of the Gaming, Betting and Lotteries Act 1988 of Tynwald.

Firstly, the whole proceeds must be devoted to the provision of prizes for purchasers of tickets or chances (after deducting expenses for running the contest). It may come as an unwelcome surprise that office sweepstakes which are run at no profit, or which donate the proceeds to charity, will be unlawful. Even if only some of the proceeds are donated to charity, the lottery will still be illegal.

The sweepstake cannot be advertised anywhere other than at the office premises or in a ticket. There are various requirements as to tickets, namely:-

• All tickets must be sold at a single location – they cannot be sent through the post;
• All tickets must be the same price;
• All tickets must be in the form of a document;
• Every ticket must state on its face:
  • The price;
  • The name and address of each of the lottery organisers;
  • A statement of the persons to whom the sale of tickets or chances by the organisers is restricted; and
  • A statement that no prize won in the lottery shall be paid/delivered by the organisers to any other person than the ultimate winner; and
• All tickets must be allotted by the organisers by way of sale and after receipt of its full price, and no money or valuable thing received by a promoter can be returned in any circumstances.

If any of those conditions are not followed, the organiser or company will be guilty of an offence and potentially subject to 6 months’ imprisonment and/or a £5,000 fine.

Is a Sweepstake Discriminatory?

As well as ensuring that the lottery does not contravene gambling laws, employers must be careful that in organising a sweepstake it does not discriminate any of its employees with protected characteristics. The protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2017 of Tynwald are:-

• Age
• Disability
• Gender reassignment
• Marriage and civil partnership
• Pregnancy and maternity
• Race, religion or belief
• Sex
• Sexual orientation.

There are certain religions which expressly forbid gambling, such as Islam. In other religions, the sacred texts imply that gambling is frowned upon. A sweepstake may have a disproportionate negative impact on such employees with those religions or beliefs which could give rise to an indirect discrimination claim. In this case, the employer would have to justify the sweepstake as a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. The employer would have to consider alternative, more inclusive ways in which to celebrate the World Cup.

Awareness of any employees with gambling addiction issues is also important. If an employee has a severe gambling addiction this could qualify as a disability under the Equality Act 2017. However, it might only be discriminatory for an employer to run a sweepstake if it was aware that any employee(s) has such an addiction.

The employer should ensure that when conducting a sweepstake it gives all onsite staff the opportunity to participate. An employer should not make an antiquated assumption that, for example, only men like football.

The World Cup seeks to be an inherently diverse tournament filled with people of different backgrounds, religions, races and of course nations. This particular World Cup has sparked heavy political debate in relation to various human rights, given the host nation’s strict laws. Discussions about these issues, the teams and their players could potentially turn hostile which may lead to sweepstake-related misconduct issues. The employer should therefore be mindful of the boundaries it sets and may wish to reiterate its standards of behaviour in the workplace.

Primarily the office sweepstake should be a bit of innocent fun with a chance of winning some money for small outlay while enjoying watching a sport. Good luck!

Eve Aycock is a trainee advocate at M&P Legal, having undergone legal studies in Netherlands, Australia, England and Scotland. This article is for general interest only and should not be relied on for legal advice; please take specialist advice on any particular set of facts.

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