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.
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.
