As Italy prepares its 2027 budget, PM Giorgi Meloni’s government is considering specific measures to raise additional revenue from gambling licences.
The Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) is examining provisional measures that could generate between €400m-€500m (£343m-£428m) from Italy’s regulated gambling sector. The proposals have not yet been included in the draft Budget Law and remain subject to change.
Most of the contribution would come from a three-year extension of Italy’s retail gambling concessions, which are due to expire at the end of 2026.
MEF is considering temporarily extending land-based concessions until the end of 2029. This would allow the government to continue collecting licensing fees while working towards the long-delayed reorganisation of Italy’s retail gambling network.
In August, Meloni instructed MEF to end negotiations with the Conference of Regions and Autonomous Provinces over the final terms of the retail gambling reorganisation.
The decision ended almost three years of negotiations and removed the reform from the government’s 2027 legislative agenda. According to reports, the failure to proceed with the planned tenders will cost the state an estimated €1.5bn in anticipated proceeds.
The mandate attached to Italy’s Tax Delegation Law subsequently expired on 29 August without state and regional authorities reaching a political agreement on the future distribution of betting shops, gaming halls and machines.
A temporary extension until the end of 2029 could generate between €200m-€250m annually for the Treasury over the three-year period.
Under the current system, concessionaires pay €120 annually for each amusement-with-prizes machine and €4,000 for every video lottery terminal. Betting fees stand at €9,500 per agency and €5,700 per betting corner, while bingo operators pay €2,800 per hall each month.
Beyond maintaining state revenues, the extension would give the government time to test new gaming-machine requirements, reopen discussions with local authorities and prepare the tenders needed to establish a long-term framework for the retail market.
MEF tables scratch-card tender
The Budget Law could also establish the framework for Italy’s next scratch-card concession, currently operated by Brightstar Lottery under a licence that expires on 30 September 2028.
MEF is reportedly considering a starting price of approximately €1bn for the tender, which is expected to retain Italy’s single-concessionaire model.
The government has been encouraged by the recent Lotto concession process, which generated more than €2.2bn in upfront state revenue. Scratch cards represent another valuable asset, with the concessionaire’s 6% premium on approximately €8bn in annual sales generating close to €500m per year.
However, the tender would not provide an immediate boost to the 2027 budget. Given the time required to prepare and award the concession, the Treasury is unlikely to collect the first two instalments before 2028.
Other proposals reportedly under consideration include introducing a digital Lotto receipt, which could generate €15m, and adding another Lotto and SuperEnalotto draw, estimated to provide approximately €50m in annual state revenue.
All options remain provisional and could be amended or withdrawn as the government prepares the 2027 Budget Law. It is expected that the government will present the Budget Law in October 2026.
Meloni still accountable on concession failures
The failure to renegotiate Italy’s land-based concessions has frustrated gambling licensees, which had expected the government to agree terms for a new generation of long-term licences.
Lottomatica CEO Guglielmo Angelozzi previously told investors that the stalled negotiations had affected the group’s long-term financial planning. It remains unclear whether operators will support another three-year extension rather than the permanent settlement they had anticipated.
The Meloni government has therefore only partially fulfilled its pledge to reorganise Italian gambling as a more efficient and reliable source of tax revenue. While it completed the online gambling mandate by introducing a new licensing regime, it failed to resolve the more complex negotiations surrounding the land-based sector.
The government is considered unlikely to reopen the broader retail reform in 2027, leaving MEF to pursue another temporary extension. Operators must now decide whether to renew licences for three more years while continuing to operate under Italy’s fragmented regional and municipal rules.
