← Office prediction league · Country notes for HR · Updated 9 November 2026
Is an office football pool legal? Free prediction leagues vs money pools, country by country
The World Cup, the Premier League or the Bundesliga, and someone in the office suggests a pool. Before HR says yes, the question is always the same: is this gambling? In most countries the answer turns on one thing, money paid to take part. This page sums up what the law says in the UK, the US, Germany, the Netherlands, Brazil and Israel, with links to the statutes and official pages behind each point.
The short answer
- Free league, no pot, points only: outside the gambling rules in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, most US states, Spain and France, because nobody pays to play.
- Colleagues pay into a pot: restricted or illegal in many places, and in the UK an unlicensed lottery is a criminal offence.
- Prize from the employer: the usual safe way to reward the winner, but it can be a taxable benefit.
- Bars and pubs: free entry with no purchase, no pot, and a prize that is not alcohol. Italy, Brazil and Spain regulate prizes a business gives. Details below.
- Israel is the exception: the law does not require payment, so a league with a prize relies on a closed-circle, entertainment-only exemption.
| Country | What makes it gambling | Free league, no pot | Colleagues pay in |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | Paying to take part | A prize competition, not gambling | Only within the narrow work lottery rules |
| Germany | A fee (Entgelt) for a chance to win | No fee, not Glücksspiel | Usually tolerated in a closed circle, nobody profiting |
| Netherlands | Chance-based prizes, no stake needed | Allowed for staff only, no licence | Allowed for staff only, no licence |
| United States | Prize, chance and consideration | No consideration, not gambling in most states | Varies by state, some forbid it |
| Brazil | Putting a value at risk | Nothing at risk, not a bet in our reading | Disputed, a misdemeanour risk |
| Israel | Winning something of value, payment not required | Points only: outside the definition | Not safe to assume it is allowed |
Why money is the line
Almost every gambling law is built from the same three parts: a prize, chance, and something paid or risked to take part. Lawyers call the last one consideration; German law calls it Entgelt; Brazil's 2023 betting law describes it as putting a value at risk. Take away the entry fee and the pot, and one of the three parts is gone. That is why employment lawyers routinely advise employers to keep money out of office pools and fund a small prize instead.
United Kingdom
Under the Gambling Act 2005, a lottery requires that people "pay in order to participate" (section 14), and a prize competition only counts as betting if the participant is required to pay (section 11). Section 339 says any other competition for a prize is not gambling. The Gambling Commission says free draws and prize competitions are not regulated forms of gambling. In our reading, a free prediction league with no pot is therefore outside the Act.
Paid sweepstakes are different. A work lottery is allowed only for people at one physical site, with tickets sold in person, no profit and no rollovers; entries by email or Teams are unlikely to qualify, and promoting an unlicensed lottery is a criminal offence.
Prizes and tax: an employer prize is normally a taxable benefit. It can be a tax-free trivial benefit if it costs £50 or less, is not cash or a cash voucher, and is not a reward for work or performance.
Sources: Gambling Act 2005 s.11; s.14; s.339; Gambling Commission, free draws and prize competitions (22 Jan 2026); Gambling Commission, work lotteries; GOV.UK, trivial benefits.
Germany
The State Treaty on Gambling (GlüStV 2021, §3) defines Glücksspiel as a game in which a fee (Entgelt) is charged for the chance to win and chance decides the outcome; paid bets on future events are also gambling. A Tippspiel that costs nothing to join and has no pot does not meet the fee element. Guidance for employers adds that a classic colleague Tipprunde is generally fine while it stays within a closed circle of staff and nobody turns it into a business, and that the employer may limit tipping during working time.
Prizes and tax: non-cash prizes from the employer can be tax-free within the €50 per month non-cash benefit limit (EStG §8), shared with any other benefits that month. Above it, the employer can pay a flat 30% tax (EStG §37b). Cash prizes are wages.
Sources: GlüStV 2021 §3; EStG §8; EStG §37b; Händlerbund, Leitfaden für WM-Tippspiele auf Arbeit (2 Jun 2026).
Netherlands
Dutch law is unusual: a kansspel does not require a stake, and football predictions count as chance-based. But the government's business portal says a football or Tour pool among colleagues may run without a licence, even across several locations, as long as it is only for employees, in a closed circle. The Tax Administration says a game for a closed group, such as a World Cup pool among colleagues, needs no gambling-tax return.
Prizes and tax: prizes from the employer are wages in kind. They can usually be paid tax-free from the free space of the work-related costs scheme (werkkostenregeling); in 2026 that is 2.00% of the payroll up to €400,000 and 1.18% above, with an 80% final levy beyond it.
Sources: Ondernemersplein, kansspel organiseren; Belastingdienst, wij organiseren een kansspel; Belastingdienst, werkkostenregeling; Wet op de kansspelen.
United States
There is no single US rule: gambling is mostly state law. Almost all states build gambling from prize, chance and consideration, meaning paying or risking something of value to enter. A league that is free to join, with no entry fee and no pot, removes consideration, which is why it is not gambling in most states. A few states read consideration broadly in promotions, so check yours. SHRM advises that keeping money out of pools avoids most legal issues and suggests non-monetary prizes such as time off or a team lunch, with participation kept voluntary.
Paid pools vary: some states tolerate them only when nobody running the pool profits, others do not allow them. California, for example, reduces a small no-profit office pool to an infraction, which still does not make it legal.
Prizes and tax: employer prizes are generally taxable wages. Cash and gift cards are never a de minimis benefit; low-value non-cash items can be (IRS Publication 15-B).
Sources: 31 U.S.C. §5362; New York Penal Law §225.00; SHRM (23 Feb 2023); National Law Review (11 Feb 2024); IRS Publication 15-B.
Brazil
The 1941 Law of Misdemeanours makes it an offence to run games of chance in a place accessible to the public and lists bets on any sports competition as games of chance; bettors can be fined. Whether a private bolão among colleagues falls under it is disputed, and the highest risk is for whoever organises one for a fee. Brazil's 2023 betting law defines a bet as putting a value at risk in the hope of a prize. In a league where nobody pays and nobody can lose anything, nothing is at risk, so in our reading it is not a bet. No court has ruled on free leagues, and the Supreme Court has been reviewing the 1941 ban since August 2026.
Prizes and tax: ask your accountant; we have not checked the rules on employer prizes.
Sources: Decreto-Lei 3.688/1941; Lei 14.790/2023; STF, 6 Aug 2026.
Israel
Israel is the strictest on paper. Section 224 of the Penal Law defines a bet as any arrangement in which someone can win money, money's worth or a benefit depending on a guess, expressly including sports results, and the definition does not mention paying to enter. Organising one is an offence unless the game meets all three conditions of section 230: it is aimed at a specific circle of people, it does not go beyond amusement or entertainment, and it is not held at a gambling venue.
A points-only league with no prize is outside the definition, since nothing of value can be won. An internal league among colleagues with a modest gift from the employer is the kind of game section 230 describes. Do not assume a pool where colleagues pay in is allowed; we found no court ruling on office pools.
Prizes and tax: a prize from the employer is a benefit from employer to employee, which the Income Tax Ordinance counts as employment income.
Sources: Penal Law, sections 224–231; Income Tax Ordinance, section 2(2).
Pubs and bars: a league for customers
A bar running a league for its customers is a different case from colleagues at work: the players are the public, and the bar is a business promoting itself. Two sets of rules can apply, gambling law and the rules on prize promotions, and in many places alcohol licensing too. The safest set-up is the same everywhere: free entry for everyone with no purchase needed, no pot, and a prize that is not alcohol.
| Country | Free league, no prize | Free league, prize from the bar | Paid pool in the bar |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | Not gambling | A prize competition, not gambling; no purchase required | Commercial betting is not permitted in pubs |
| United States | Not gambling | Usually not gambling; some states ban drinks as prizes | Illegal in many states; can cost the liquor licence |
| Germany | Not gambling | Not gambling with free entry | Public gambling without a permit |
| Spain | Not gambling | May need a regional notice and a tax on the prize | Betting that needs a regional licence |
| Italy | Outside the prize rules | A regulated prize contest: Ministry notice, deposit, notary | Illegal betting |
| Brazil | Just a game | Usually needs prior authorisation from the Ministry of Finance | Can be illegal gambling |
United Kingdom
A free league with no purchase needed is a prize competition, which the Gambling Act does not treat as gambling (section 339). Once people must pay to take part, predicting a result counts as betting even though it takes skill (section 11), and the Gambling Commission says commercial betting is not permitted in alcohol-licensed premises at any stake. A paid sweepstake fits only narrow exemptions, such as a customer lottery with prizes of no more than £50 and no profit. In England and Wales, a prize must not reward buying and drinking alcohol in a short period; in Scotland, alcohol can be a prize only in a sealed container to take away.
Sources: Gambling Act 2005 s.11; Gambling Commission, betting in alcohol-licensed premises; customer lotteries, Sch. 11 Part 3; Mandatory Licensing Conditions; Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 Sch. 3.
United States
Two sets of state rules apply: gambling law and the alcohol-control (ABC) rules. A free league with no purchase needed usually avoids gambling law; "buy a drink to enter" can bring it back in. Paid pools in a bar are treated as illegal gambling in many states and can cost the bar its liquor licence, even when the house keeps nothing. Some states ban drinks as prizes outright, such as Massachusetts and Illinois, and California lets bars give only non-alcoholic prizes for contests on the premises.
Sources: New York ABC Law §106; California 4 CCR §106; Massachusetts 204 CMR 4.03; Illinois 235 ILCS 5/6-28.
Germany, Spain, Italy and Brazil
Germany: without a fee there is no Glücksspiel, even with a prize; a paid Tippspiel in a pub, open to the public, is gambling that needs a permit. Spain: a free league is not gambling, but a prize the bar gives to promote itself can be treated as a promotional draw, with a notice to the regional authority and a tax of about 10% of the prize value in many regions. Italy: a prize from a business makes it a "concorso a premio", even with free entry, and the rules name predictions on sports events: a notice to the Ministry, a deposit and a notary or Chamber of Commerce official; a league for points only is outside these rules. Brazil: a prize given to promote the business usually needs prior authorisation from the Ministry of Finance, and the exemption for sporting contests is lost when the contest carries the business's brand or involves guessing.
Sources: GlüStV 2021 §3; Ley 13/2011; Lei 5.768/1971.
Spain and France, briefly
Spain: the national Gambling Act (Ley 13/2011) defines gambling as risking money or objects of economic value, and excludes social games of pure leisure that move no economic value and earn the organiser nothing. In-person games are mainly regulated by the regions. France: gambling is defined as games offered to the public that require a financial sacrifice from participants (Code de la sécurité intérieure, L320-1). A free league for colleagues meets neither element.
Sources: Ley 13/2011 (BOE); OFDT note on gambling regulation (2025).
How to keep an office league on the safe side
- No entry fee and no pot. Nobody pays to join, nobody can lose money.
- The prize comes from the company, not from players: a team lunch, a trophy, a day off. Tell payroll.
- Colleagues only. Keep it to staff, and don't run it as a customer promotion without checking the rules for those.
- Nobody profits from running it.
- Voluntary, with no pressure to join, and clear house rules. Our guide to running an office league has a copyable set.
A free league with no money in it
BeTeam runs your office prediction league with no entry fees, no pot and no payouts: points and a table only. Fixtures load on their own, picks lock at kick-off, and you get a poster, an office TV table and ready-made messages.
Open a free office leagueFrequently asked questions
Can a pub or bar run a prediction league for its customers?
Usually yes, if it is free: no entry fee, no pot and no purchase needed. A prize from the bar changes things in some countries: Italy and Brazil treat it as a regulated prize promotion, Spain may tax it, and some US states and Scotland restrict alcohol as a prize. A paid pool in a bar is restricted almost everywhere. A league for points only, with a non-alcoholic prize where the rules allow one, is the safest set-up. This is general information, not legal advice.
Is an office football pool legal?
It depends on the country and, above all, on money. In most countries the line between a game and gambling is paying to take part: an entry fee, a stake or a pot. A prediction league that is free to join, with no pot and points only, is on the safe side of that line in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, most US states, Spain and France. Pools where colleagues pay in are a different matter and are restricted or illegal in many places. Israel is stricter: its law does not require payment, so it relies on a closed-circle, entertainment-only exemption. This is general information, not legal advice.
Is a free office prediction league gambling in the UK?
Under the Gambling Act 2005, a lottery and a betting-style prize competition both require that people pay to take part, and section 339 says other prize competitions are not gambling. The Gambling Commission describes free draws and prize competitions as not regulated forms of gambling. A free league with no pot therefore falls outside the Act, in our reading. A paid office sweepstake must fit the narrow work lottery rules instead.
Can the company give the winner a prize?
Yes, and that is the usual way to keep money out of the league: the employer funds a small prize such as a team lunch, a trophy or a day off. In most countries the prize is then a benefit from employer to employee, which can be taxable. Small non-cash prizes often fall under an exemption, such as the UK trivial benefits rule or Germany's 50 euro monthly non-cash limit. Check with payroll or an accountant.
What makes an office pool illegal?
Usually a combination of an entry fee or stake, a money pot, someone profiting from running it, or opening it beyond colleagues. In the UK, an unlicensed lottery is a criminal offence; in Brazil, bets on sports are listed as games of chance; in Israel, organising a bet outside the section 230 exemption is an offence. Removing the money removes most of the risk.
Does BeTeam handle money?
No. BeTeam has no entry fees, no pot, no payouts and no betting odds. Colleagues compete for points and a place on the table. Any prize is the employer's choice and is given outside the app.
