FACTS ASSERTED BY THE COMPLAINANT AND NOT CONTESTED BY THE RESPONDENT:<\/p>\n
The Complainant is the subsidiary of an international sports-betting and gaming group, operating both online and in the retail sector. The Complainant’s parent, Entain plc (the “Parent”), was incorporated in Luxembourg in 2004 as Gaming VC Holdings S.A., re-domiciled to the Isle of Man on 5 January 2010 and underwent a name change from GVC Holdings plc to Entain plc on 9 December 2020. For the financial year ending 31 December 2022, the Parent’s underlying operating profit for the online gaming business was £541 million.<\/p>\n
The Parent has a comprehensive portfolio of established brands. Its “Sports Brands” include BWIN, CORAL, CRYSTALBET, EUROBET, LADBROKES, NEDS INTERNATIONAL, and SPORTINGBET.<\/p>\n
The Parent has traded on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) since 24 May 2010 and as of 1 February 2024, has a market capitalisation value of £6.1 billion. The United Kingdom is the Parent’s core market and accounts for a significant portion of sales, with other key markets being the European Union and Australia.<\/p>\n
The Complainant’s SPORTINGBET brand has accrued significant reputation, and the mark has built up a vast amount of goodwill relation to a wide range of goods and services. Notably, the Complainant’s SPORTINGBET brand has sponsored well-known football clubs in the UK and EU, with the brand being featured on the official matchday kit. The Complainant submits that the Complainant’s SPORTINGBET brand and mark are widely known.<\/p>\n
The disputed domain name resolves to a live website offering services relating to online sports betting and gaming. The website invites users to interact with sports betting services on its website, including football matches in Portugal, Argentina, Italy, and the UK.<\/p>", "other_legal_proceedings": "
The Panel is not aware of any other legal proceedings which are pending or decided and which relate to the disputed domain name.<\/p>", "no_response_filed": "
The Complainant contends that the requirements of the Policy have been met and that the disputed domain name should be transferred to it.<\/p>\n
NO ADMINISTRATIVELY COMPLIANT RESPONSE HAS BEEN FILED.<\/p>", "rights": "
The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the disputed domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(i) of the Policy).<\/p>", "no_rights_or_legitimate_interests": "
The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the Respondent to have no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(ii) of the Policy).<\/p>", "bad_faith": "
The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the disputed domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(iii) of the Policy).<\/p>", "procedural_factors": "
Due to administrative deficiency in commencement the Respondent was provided with additional time to provide a response. The Respondent never accessed the online case file nor contacted the CAC.<\/p>\n
The Panel is satisfied that all procedural requirements under UDRP were met and there is no other reason why it would be inappropriate to provide a decision.<\/p>", "decision": "Accepted", "panelists": [ "Dr. Thomas Schafft" ], "date_of_panel_decision": "2024-04-12 00:00:00", "informal_english_translation": "
The Complainant owns various trademark registrations for the designation “sportingbet”, including the UK trademark registration UK00002642443 “SPORTINGBET” (word), registered on March 29, 2013 (and duly renewed) for numerous goods and services in classes 9, 35, 38, 41, and 42.<\/p>\n
The Complainant has been using the domain name <sportingbet.com> for an active website to promote its “SPORTINGBET” brand for over a decade as at the date of this decision.<\/p>\n
The disputed domain name was registered on March 8, 2022, i.e., the Complainant’s trademark registration cited above predates the registration of the disputed domain name.<\/p>", "decision_domains": { "sportingbet730.site": "TRANSFERRED" }, "panelist": null, "panellists_text": null }