EUROPEAN REGULATION
FRANCE
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting, poker, bingo and lottery.
Operator Type: Private operators can obtain
online licences for sports betting, horse race
betting and poker. The monopoly has exclusive
rights to bingo and lottery.
Status: A regulated market since the
introduction of a licensing regime in 2010,
following which the EC withdrew its infringement
proceedings. Parliament announced a full review
of French gambling legislation in 2016, although
little progress has been made to date except for
changes to allow for international poker liquidity
and provisions relating to the organisation of
esports tournaments.
GERMANY
Regulated Gambling Products:
Schleswig-Holstein, a small Northern German
state, regulates sports betting, horse race betting,
poker, casino and bingo. The other 15 states of
Germany currently only permit sports betting
and horse race betting.
Operator Type: Private operators can no
longer obtain licences in Schleswig-Holstein, and
those in existence will expire on 30 June 2019.
In the other 15 states, horse race betting licences
are available at a regional level but the position
surrounding the 20 available sports betting
licences is still uncertain.
Status: The licensing regime in Germany is
in a state of flux. The tender for 20 Federal
sports betting licences was abortive, following
a number of appeals by operators who were
not granted a licence. The CJEU ruled in 2016
that Germany’s sports betting regulation is
incompatible with EU law and that enforcement
actions will be unlawful where none of the
20 licences could, in practice, be acquired.
The decision led to calls for comprehensive
legal reform of Germany’s gambling legislation.
In March 2017, all 16 German states signed
amendments to the country’s gambling law
which will allow for an unlimited number of
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sports betting licences, although the ban on
online casinos will be upheld. The decision to
only make minimal amendments has drawn
widespread criticism, particularly from the EC.
Amendments are scheduled to enter into force
on 1 January 2018.
GREAT BRITAIN
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting, poker, casino, bingo
and lottery.
Operator Type: All licences are available to
private operators save for lottery, which is reserved
exclusively for the monopoly provider, Came lot.
Status: Any operator that transacts with,
or advertises to, British residents requires a
licence from the Gambling Commission.
Licensed operators required to source
gambling software from Commission-licensed
businesses. A corresponding tax rate of 15% of
gross profits was introduced on 1 December 2014.
This is subject to an ongoing judicial review by
a Gibraltar trade association and its questions
regarding its compatibility with European law.
On 5 December 2016, the UK government
announced that the first use of free-plays for
remote gaming will be taxed and winnings will
be brought into the duty calculation at the end
of the rewagering process. The changes are set
to be included in the Finance Bill 2017 and are
due to take effect on 1 August 2017.
GREECE
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting and lottery.
Operator Type: All products are exclusively
reserved for the monopoly providers although
24 transitional licences for private operators
remain active, with all products permitted.
Status: The enabling regulations that implement
a Greek online gambling licensing regime are yet
to be implemented. In 2012, a “transition period”
commenced whereby the Greek government
granted 24 transitional licences to operators,
enabling them to keep transacting with Greek
residents. The fate of the 24 licences is still unclear,