Bodog Company History
On this page you’ll find an independently written history of Bodog. For more details and up to date information visit the Bodog Website.
Bodog was founded in 1994 by then 33 year old Calvin Ayre who at the time held two college degrees and had a wealth of business experience. His story however is not one of some Ivy League rich kid who had everything handed to him on a silver spoon; it’s quite contrary that in fact. Calvin Ayre was born in 1961 to a farmer from Lloydminster, Saskatchewan. In 1994 he sold everything he owned giving himself $10,000 to start the Bodog brand of products. By 2006 he parlayed that investment into a company which processed over $6 billion USD per year in wagers with an estimated value over $1 billion USD.
Bodog’s initial corporate aim was to act as a digital entertainment software provider seeking to revolutionize the online music, video and other media industries. A short while later Bodog’s focused shifted in part to launching a Costa Rican based sportsbook which was live by 1995 and also included with it a racebook. Four years later, Bodog casino was added to their products and in 2004 at the tail end of the poker boom, Bodog Poker was unveiled.
In April 2008, Calvin Ayre announced his retirement from Bodog shortly after transferring the companies North American business to Mohawk Morris Gaming Group based out of Kahnawake, Canada. His announcement came rather unexpected, but he stated wishing to further work on the Calvin Ayre foundation to be his primary reasons.
Bodog Corporate Time Line
1994 – Bodog was established with the aim of being a software provider.
1995 – Bodog sportsbook first launched.
1999 – Bodog Casino was added to the portfolio of Bodog brands.
2002 – Bodog Girls is launched, a website that shows sexy woman half naked while wearing Bodog gear. These girls are used in promotions and part of parties for many years to come.
April 2003 – Bodog who is now known as the primary site for prop betting believed they’ve been a a victim of insider betting. Bodog was quite vocal in accusing employees of CBS of betting on the outcome of the television show Survivor while having advanced knowledge of the shows outcome.
2004 - Bodog Casino was added to the portfolio of Bodog brands.
December 2004 – Bodog launches a new entertainment news site at bodogbeat.com
August 2004 – Bodog Poker forms Team Bodog announcing its initial members as David Williams (2004 WSOP Main Event Runner up) and Josh Arieh (3rd place in 2004 WSOP) as founding members.
January 2005 – Bodog launches a new sports information site at bodognation.com.
2005 – Bodog Girls Calendar was debuted.
2006 –Bodog launched a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion called BodogFight which eventually aired on Outdoor Life Network and The Fight Network (in Canada).
June 2006 – Bodog Poker signs WSOP Champion Jamie Gold days after he captured the 2006 WSOP Main Event title to Team Bodog.
April 2006 – Female poker professional Evelyn NG is added as the newest member of Team Bodog.
January 2007 – Bodog Poker cuts ties with 2006 WSOP Main Event winner Jamie Gold making his run as a Team Bodog member a short one.
February 2007 - Bodog Founder Calvin Ayre launches a personal blog at CalvinAyre.com
August 2007 – A Superior Court judge from King County, Washington issued a default judgment of $ 48,937,456.00 against Bodog in a case where 1st Technology LLC was claiming patent infringement on the method in which Bodog processes data online.
August 2007 – Bodog.com is temporary rebranded to newbodog.com after having their domain name was seized as a result of the judgment mentioned above. Bodog claims the company was never served and does not have a significant enough presence in the United States to infringe on any patents.
September 2008 – NewBodog.com is rebranded to the Bodog brand Bodoglife.com.
February 2008 – Bodog applies for UK gambling license. While asking about their US operations Calvin Ayre commented that they are licensed by sovereign nations to legally conduct the business that they do and that while they accept business from the US they most certainly do no operate in the US.
March 2008, Poker professional Jean Robert Bellande is added as the newest member of TeamBodog.
April 2008 – Bodog’s North American business ownership is transferred to Morris Mohawk Group located on the Kahnawake Reserve in Quebec, Canada..
April 2008 – Bodog founder Calvin Ayre retires from his active roll with the company to focus on his foundation.
May 2008 – Bodog cuts ties with Josh Arieh, a founding member of Team Bodog. Both parties publicly stated the relationship ended on good terms.
May 2008 – Bodog Poker adds controversial poker pro Justin Bonomo to their roster of Team Bodog. Bonomo is infamous under his user name ZeeJustin which was used in one of the most publicized cases of multi accounting (using multiple accounts in same poker tournament). He publically apologized many times and took steps to rebuild his status in the poker community. Bodog signing him was certainly high risk but he managed to give them a great deal of exposure at the 2008 World Series of Poker.
June 2008 – Bodog Fight closes claiming loss of $38 million.
June 2008 – Bodog unveils new and improved bodog poker software which includes upgraded features such as resizeable tables.
July 2008 – The US Department of Justice seized $24 million dollars of Bodog’s money claiming it was used for money laundering and to fund illegal sports betting. (note: while this is a large sum of money for anyone to lose, Bodog is a multi million dollar company that has been reported to process 6 billion per year in wagers and has been valued at over $1 billion).
June 2009 - The Bodog.com domain name is brought back to life, and Bodoglife.com is no more now that Bodog.com is back.
