Irakli Gharibashvili, Prime Minister of Georgia, has instructed ministerial agencies to proceed with increasing taxes on gambling businesses.    The PM declared the command as a primary directive of the Budget Speech, citing concerns that gambling had reached “catastrophic levels”, as Georgians are reported to have wagered GEL 52bn (€17bn) in 2022. As a direct response to growing concerns, Gharibashvili has …

Groupe FDJ has finalised its €380m acquisition of Premier Lotteries Ireland (PLI), a transformative deal that will see the Paris Euronext lottery group take stewardship of the Irish National Lottery.  This morning, FDJ announced that it had acquired 100% of PLI share capital, taking control of the exclusive rights to operate the Irish National Lottery until 2034.  As declared on …

A public petition has been launched by British racing stakeholders to ‘stop the implementation of betting affordability/financial risk checks‘. The petition, which has currently amassed over 40,000 signatures, was initiated by Nevin Truesdale, Chief Executive of The Jockey Club – the UK’s largest racecourse operator. Led by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), racing stakeholders have openly stated their opposition to …

Spanish authorities have vowed to deepen academic research to bolster the treatment, intervention and prevention of gambling disorders. Yesterday, DGOJ – Spain’s General Directorate of Gambling – announced that 26 projects will receive research grants in the field of ‘gambling disorder prevention’. The initiative is led by Spain’s Ministry of Consumer Affairs, which has reserved €1.3m funding for academic studies …

Amid looming consolidation across Western European betting markets, Portugal stands out as a fresh market for online sportsbook competition. SBC taps into the expertise of Tiago Pereira, market lead for LeBull.pt, who cites bright prospects for new challengers in the Portuguese arena. SBC: Hi Tiago, thanks for this interview. Having worked for Betano and Entain, you are a seasoned executive …

 Spelinspektionen, the Gambling Inspectorate of Sweden, has issued a warning and penalty fee of SEK 9m (€750k) on Videoslots for failure to uphold protections of Sweden’s Money Laundering Act. The Inspectorate had placed Videoslots under supervision on 2 November 2021, citing “shortcomings in the work against money laundering and financing of terrorism”.  Under scrutiny, Videoslots is reported to have insufficient …

Lottomatica SPA has informed the Borsa Milan that it has settled on terms to acquire SKS365 Malta, the operating company behind the PlanetWin365 (sportsbook) and PlanetPay365 (arcade) brands, for an enterprise value of €639m. The acquisition, confirmed today, means that Lottomatica SPA is set to become the outright largest omnichannel gambling group in the Italian market.  Lottomatica’s deal entails taking …

Entain Plc has outlined key initiatives to accelerate its operational strategy and improve the quality of earnings across its business portfolio.  The new plans were disclosed in Entain’s Q3 trading update, as the FTSE100 gambling group reported proforma net gaming revenue (NGR) declines across its Online and Retail units.   Q3 trading is tracked to the revised full-year EBITDA guidance of …

Playtech Plc has issued a further legal update on its ongoing service fee dispute with its Mexican joint-venture partner, Caliplay. Updating investors, the FTSE250 gambling technology group responded to a Mexican court order filed by Caliplay on 5 October, which sought the “annulment of its legal relationship with Playtech and its related parties.” Playtech states that it has “accepted service …

Spain’s Ministry of Consumer Affairs has published the findings of its “Prevalence Study of Gambling on the General Public of Spain”. The study was presented to public health and welfare stakeholders who form part of the Responsible Gambling Advisory Council. The council is charged with developing safer gambling policies to protect Spanish consumers from gambling harms. Research was conducted using …