Global IT outage disrupts betting sites, broadcasting services, casino and retail operations

A widespread IT outage affected online betting platforms and broadcasting services on Friday with Ladbrokes and Coral, both operating under parent company Entain, reporting disruptions due to the issue. 

Customers trying to access the Ladbrokes and Coral websites were met with a notice indicating a "temporary service disruption" and were advised to check back later. Additionally, Ladbrokes retail outlets also experienced issues.

The problem, which has been linked to a broader global technical issue impacting various sectors, was acknowledged by the companies on social media platform X. 

The statement from Ladbrokes and Coral read: "You might have seen the news about the global technical issue affecting airlines, banks, etc. Unfortunately, we're experiencing this too. We’re working hard to resolve the issue but don’t know when it will be fixed. Thanks for being so patient and apologies for the inconvenience."

You might have seen the news about the global technical issue affecting airlines, banks etc. unfortunately we're experiencing this too. We're working hard to resolve the issue but don't know when it will be fixed. Thanks for being so patient and apologies for the inconvenience.

— Ladbrokes Care (@LadbrokesCare) July 19, 2024

Sky Sports Racing, scheduled to broadcast races from Newbury, was also impacted by the outage. The network posted Friday morning on X: "Due to a global technical issue, Sky Sports Racing is currently unable to broadcast live. We apologize for any inconvenience." Broadcasting was resumed a few hours later, plenty of time before the card began at 1.50 pm.

Despite these disruptions, other UK bookmakers did not report any issues. On Friday, eight race meetings are taking place across Britain and Ireland, and no problems were reported with ticketing or on-course systems.

The IT outage, which seems to affect Windows PCs and software, has caused problems globally, including in Europe, Australia, India, the US, and New Zealand. In the UK, Sky News experienced temporary broadcasting issues, while air and rail passengers faced difficulties with ticket purchases, security checks, and check-ins. 

George Kurtz, CEO of cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, clarified that the outage resulted from a software update rather than a cyberattack: "CrowdStrike is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts. Mac and Linux hosts are not impacted. This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been deployed."

Some operations in the US experienced the effects of the outage as well. In Henderson, Nevada, visitors to the Green Valley Ranch Casino reported that all slot machines were down, forcing staff to manually process player transactions.

This resulted in considerable delays and inconvenience for patrons. Las Vegas Locally highlighted that casino computer systems throughout the city were experiencing crashes, with reports of the “blue screen of death” affecting TV monitors at South Point Casino.

The Australian betting sector also felt the impact of the outage. Major betting company Tab revealed that both its online and physical operations were entirely halted. Competitor Sportsbet reported similar issues. A TAB spokesperson told The Sydney Morning Herald: “We’re facing a total blackout. This has impacted both our online and retail operations, putting us in the same predicament as many other companies.”

Microsoft 365 acknowledged the situation on social media, stating they are “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact in a more expedient fashion” and observing “a positive trend in service availability.”