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George Cottrell, a close associate of Nigel Farage and a key figure in Reform UK’s inner circle, acted as a front for a major gambling syndicate that was “given control” of his betting accounts, a high court document alleges.
Cottrell acted as a stalking horse for a syndicate involving one of the world’s most successful gamblers, Tony Bloom, it is claimed in the public documents, filed at the high court.
Bloom, a billionaire, is the majority shareholder and chair of Brighton & Hove Albion football club and made his fortune from gambling.
He is known in the gambling industry by the moniker of “The Lizard” and used “whales”, or frontmen, to assist in gambling enterprises, it is claimed.
The details are set out in a 19-page document filed to the high court as part of an active dispute between Bloom and a former associate of his, Ryan Dudfield, whose lawyers claim he is owed his share of gambling profits estimated in the region of $250m (£189m).
The collective, known as Starlizard Betting Syndicate, makes about £600m each year in winnings, the document alleges.
It makes its money via bets, which are sometimes placed on the accounts of frontmen including “footballers, sportsmen and businessmen”, it is claimed.
These accounts were referred to as “secret exotic accounts” and were operated “in a secretive manner” from satellite offices in Canary Wharf, London, the document alleges.
Highly successful gamblers often find themselves in effect shut out of betting sites because of the scale and frequency of the bets they place. This means “whales” are often deployed to place bets on their behalf. As someone known for high-stakes betting, Cottrell has the profile of a “whale”.
“Cottrell was not a particularly successful gambler, and frequently lost large sums of money,” the documents allege. This is what led the claimant, who describes himself as an “introducer”, to put Cottrell in touch with Bloom’s syndicate, it is claimed.
Substantial profits were made by Bloom and other members of Starlizard Betting Syndicate “by utilising online betting accounts held in the name of an individual called Mr George Cottrell to place bets on sporting fixtures, predominantly football matches”, the document alleges.
The paper claims that “Mr Cottrell had given control of his betting accounts to Mr Bloom and the Syndicate so that it was not necessary for bets to be sent to Mr Cottrell for him to place.”
The document refers to Cottrell’s 2017 conviction for wire fraud, for which he served several months in a US prison.
According to the papers, an arrangement was reached between Bloom, the syndicate and Cottrell that benefited all parties. Cottrell received a 33% share of any wins but appears to have been covered for any of his losses.
It is alleged that losses sustained by an individual whose account was used to place bets would generally be borne by Bloom or his syndicate and that the individual therefore achieved their share of the winnings “risk free”.
The bets were placed using online gambling accounts held by Cottrell with Stake.com, an offshore casino where users transact in cryptocurrency, the document alleges.
Cottrell also tried to procure English and Welsh clients from Dudfield for an offshore gambling site, Tether.bet, despite the firm not holding a UK gambling licence, according to the filing.
It is alleged that the agreement reached between the syndicate and Cottrell included that the syndicate would “cease to place its bets via gambling platforms in which Mr Cottrell had a financial interest, such as Tether.bet”.
Lawyers acting for Cottrell previously said to the Guardian that he was not a director, shareholder or stakeholder in Tether.bet and had had “no involvement” in any companies that use cryptocurrencies.
According to the document, Cottrell indicated a “willingness to proceed” with the agreement that betting accounts in his name could be used by Bloom in February 2022, while at Daphne’s restaurant in west London, with his ex-girlfriend Georgia Toffolo.
Starlizard Consulting was originally owned by Blue Lizard Consulting, of which Bloom is the majority shareholder. According to court documents, it provides services to Bloom and others in order to “facilitate the operation of Mr Bloom’s private betting syndicate”.
The syndicate’s total winnings are unknown.
Dudfield claims he could be owed $17.5m because of a profit-share arrangement in which he says he was entitled to receive 7% of its winnings.
The exact membership of the syndicate is also unclear but employees of Starlizard Consulting were given different levels of entry into it as part of their compensation, the document alleges.
They claim that Cottrell and one of Bloom’s key associates, Ian McAleavy, continued the syndicate arrangement after Dudfield had been told it was no longer operating.
“The claimant was told … that the Syndicate’s use of Mr Cottrell’s betting accounts had ceased,” the documents allege.
“In fact Mr McAleavy and Mr Cottrell both knew that the Syndicate was continuing to make use of Mr Cottrell’s betting accounts and they both knew that very significant profits had/could be made as a result of the bets that had been placed and were to be placed,” the documents claim.
Dudfield claims he became aware of betting activity that suggested it was ongoing and is therefore seeking his share of the profits it has made, alleging that they lied to him about it being shut down.
Lawyers acting for Cottrell were approached for comment. Bloom was approached for comment via Brighton and Hove Albion FC.
Bloom has yet to file a defence to the claim.
