SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
German lawmakers appear to have reached an interstate agreement on the creation of a new national gambling framework which will abide with European Union business and competition laws.
Last Friday, at its annual ministerial conference in Warnemünde, a press release was published detailing that Germany’s 16 states would work towards a treaty for gambling focusing on effective online gambling/sports betting provisions.
The German states will now work towards repealing the country’s 2012 gambling act, which has proved ineffective at creating appropriate business conditions for the gambling sector and its stakeholders.
The new interstate initiative will likely kill Germany’s capped 20 online sports betting operator licensure system first issued by the Hesse Ministry in September 2014.
The widely criticised Hesse capped licensure framework had failed to meet European Court of Justice (ECJ) business competition standards, with ECJ officials rejecting the proposal in October 2015.
Following the ECJ rejection, the Hesse Ministry was further criticised by industry stakeholders for trying to amend its ‘unfit for purpose’ online betting framework, with sector bodies’ calling for complete legislative overhaul.
Following the publication of last week’s PR, The German Betting Association (DSWV) stated that it welcomed the progressive interstate initiative towards a coherent gambling framework.
DSWV president Mathias Dahms stated: “The agreement makes us hopeful. For years emphasize the reputable sports betting company that limiting the number of licenses is constitutional and European law. With the introduction of a genuine permission system can finally be made legal certainty. ”
“The letters of intent must be consistently implemented now. This requires a new State Treaty on gaming with new systematics: The European law monopoly on sports betting should not be only temporarily suspended, but must be completely abolished “.
