Germany’s sports betting licensing plans are once again in disarray following a legal challenge by an Austrian bookmaker.

On Wednesday, the Administrative Court of Darmstadt upheld a complaint filed by Austrian sports betting operator Vierklee that the wagering license procurement process overseen by the German state of Hesse wasn’t sufficiently transparent.

The attorney representing the Tirol-based Vierklee in this matter told German media outlet Bild that his client and other gaming companies “were not informed about the actual start of the concession procedure in July 2019.” As a result, the court ordered an immediate suspension of the licensing process until all interested applicants can compete on the same footing.

The German Sports Betting Association (DSWV) couldn’t hide its irritation at Vierklee’s last minute protest, with DSWV president Mathias Dahms calling the ruling “a big blow to our members” – a group that doesn’t include Vierklee – around 30 of which have duly submitted their new betting license applications.

But the licensing process, which aimed to have a legal online gambling market in place by July 1, 2021, is once again “in the stars” and Dahms expressed annoyance that the “effort and energy” invested by DSWV members in pursuit of “legal certainty” has once again been for naught.

Dahms had sympathy for staff at the Hessian Ministry of the Interior and the Darmstadt Regional Council, who had the unfortunate task of attempting to herd these cats over the finish line. Dahms also expressed hope that these staffers would be allowed to resume their work as soon as possible and “finally make the approval process a success.”

The DSWV, which is waiting to read the full court ruling before deciding whether to mount an appeal, may well wish German regulators all the speed in the world in vetting applicants’ licenses. But the industry group has also urged the government to make several changes to the betting regulations that were approved by representatives of Germany’s 16 states last month.

Among the changes sought are fewer restrictions on in-play betting, raising the €1 limit for online slots stakes, lifting the requirement for customers to hold separate accounts for each gaming vertical and overturning a ban on third-party affiliate marketers.

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Sweden’s Administrative Court in Linköping this week ruled on 11 appeals against penalties leveled by the Swedish Gambling Authority on locally licensed gambling operators last summer.

Spelinspektionen, the Swedish gambling regulator, fined the operators after finding out that they offered betting on sporting events where the majority of participants were under the age of 18. Betting on such events is prohibited under Swedish law.

Spelinspektionen issued hefty fines on its licensees that were accompanied by warnings that repeated violations could even cost them their licenses to operate in Sweden.

• RELATED: Swedish Regulator Clears bet365, Three Other Operators of Taking Bets on Underage Athletes

The gambling companies appealed their penalties and the Administrative Court recently reviewed and issued its rulings on the 11 appeals. The court rejected five of these, amended another five to lower the penalty fees, and canceled one penalty.

The now canceled penalty was slapped on online sports betting operator Bethard, which was fined SEK2.5 million by Spelinspektionen in the summer of 2019. The court said in its ruling that while the operator’s offense was not “minor or excusable”, it was also “not serious.” The court ruled that Spelinspektionen decide whether Bethard should be fined and, if so, to determine the size of the penalty.

Lowered Fines

The Administrative Court lowered five of the fines imposed on errant gambling operators in its recent ruling on the matter. Polar Limited, which operates the Coolbet brand in the Swedish market, had its penalty lowered from SEK700,000 to SEK650,000.

In its appeal, Polar said that the Swedish Gambling Authority had different standards for different sporting events to determine if the majority of players were under the age of 18. The operator further clarified that the regulator counted non-playing squad members for one event but not for another.

Spelinspektionen admitted its error and agreed that the penalty should be lowered.

Casinostugan Ltd., which runs a brand of the same name in Sweden, had its fine lowered from SEK3.5 million to SEK3 million due to an error by a third-party technology provider.

Gaming Innovation Group was another operator that had its penalty reduced. The company’s Swedish subsidiary Zecure Gaming Limited was licensed to provide online gambling services through the Guts, Rizk, and Thrills brands.

GiG had its fine reduced from SEK3.5 million to SEK3 million after it managed to prove that its offering of betting on an underage sporing event was the result of a “single programming error.”

Last year, GiG shut its sports betting operations in Sweden due to the fine and the sportsbooks’ poorer-than-expected performance in the Swedish market.

Snabbare Ltd., an operation managed by Swedish gambling group Cherry, had its fine reduced from SEK9.5 million to SEK8 million. ComeOn, another Cherry-owned brand, saw its fine lowered from SEK6.5 million to SEK6 million.

The Administrative Court also lowered the fine slapped on online gambling operation Hajper from SEK4.5 million to SEK4 million.

Rejected Appeals

The Administrative Court rejected five of the appeals filed by penalized operators, ruling that the seriousness of their violations matched the penalties levied by Spelinspektionen.

Bet365, which operates in Sweden via its subsidiary Hillside Sports, argued that the Swedish gambling regulator did not handle the issue in a transparent and fair way and that the independent body that had investigated locally licensed sportsbooks did not perform its probes into an equal manner. Bet365 was fined SEK10 million for offering betting on matches with predominantly underage participants.

Betfair, a brand owned by Irish gambling group Flutter Entertainment, also had its appeal dismissed. The sports betting operation, which was slapped with a SEK5.5 million fine last summer, argued that its penalty should be lifted because it had offered betting on an under-19s football match and while the majority of the participants in the event in question had been under 18, the majority in the competition had been older.

The Stars Group and GVC Holdings subsidiary ElectraWorks made a similar argument to Betfair’s, but both had their appeals rejected by the Administrative Court. The Stars Group was hit with a SEK10 million fine last summer, while GVC received a SEK5.5 million penalty for its violations.

Source: Förvaltningsrätten har prövat överklaganden av elva beslut från Spelinspektionen

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The U.K.’s Gaming Commission (UKGC) has ordered Caesars Entertainment U.K. to pay £13 million in fines for eight offenses the regulator has found. The casino operator is accused of ignoring social responsibility failings and a lack of anti-money laundering (AML) checks.

The social failings all involve customers who spent beyond their means, or had tried to self-exclude in the past. One customer lost £240,000 over a 13-month period, but had previously self-excluded, while another lost £323,000 in a 12-month period had had displayed “signs of problem gambling.” Another self-employed nanny lost £18,000 in a year, and had admitted to sourcing funds from family and an overdraft facility. Lastly, a retired postman lost £15,000 in 44 days.

On the AML side, Caesars is accused of not carrying out adequate source of funds checks on £3.5 million, with £1.6 million in losses, from a single customer over a three month span. Another customer was not subjected to customer due diligence (CDD) and lost £240,000 over a 13-month period. One woman, who identified as a waitress, somehow gambled £87,000 and lost £15,000 during a 12-month period. Finally, a politically exposed person (PEP) lost £795,000 during a 13-month period, but Caesars did not look into where he got the funds.

“We have published this case at this time because it’s vitally important that the lessons are factored into the work the industry is currently doing to address poor practices of VIP management in which we must see rapid progress made,” said Neil McArthur, Chief Executive of the Gambling Commission. “The failings in this case are extremely serious. A culture of putting customer safety at the heart of business decisions should be set from the very top of every company and Caesars failed to do this. We will now continue to investigate the individual licence holders involved with the decisions taken in this case.”

The fine, which will go to the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms, is an important lesson to the operator, but not much against their bottom line. In Caesars latest quarterly report, the operator noted $8.74 billion in revenue for of 2019. But even with that healthy income, the company recorded a net loss of $1.2 billion, thanks to $1.37 billion in interest payments on their mountain of debt. The fine won’t help that, but it also doesn’t amount to much in comparison.

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Foxwoods Resort Casino, one of Connecticut’s two casinos, is facing criticism for placing more than 5,000 employees, including around 1,200 unionized workers, on furlough after it closed temporarily last week.

The state’s two tribal casinos as well as a number of other businesses were ordered to shut down for at least two weeks as part of the measures invoked by Connecticut lawmakers to reduce the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus.

Foxwoods, operated by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe, and Mohegan Sun, managed by Mohegan Sun, are the only two casinos that are authorized to operate on the territory of Connecticut. Both properties went dark last Tuesday to join the slew of gambling venues around the country to close in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Following Foxwoods’ closure, news emerged that the casino has furloughed more than 5,000 workers, including 1,200 unionized employees represented by Local 2121 of the United Auto Workers.

The union informed the affected workers that the casino did not agree to paid leave for workers. The gambling venue closed amid contract negotiations between its management and employees represented by Local 2121.

Commenting on Foxwoods’ actions, Local 2121 President John DelMonte said that they were very disappointed that the casino refused to negotiate paid leave and that they were proactive when seeking casino management’s assistance on the issue, while Foxwoods instead “chose to be reactive.”

Mr. DelMonte also pointed out that Local 2121 was given 24 hours to inform its members that they would be placed on furlough for two weeks and would be forced to collect unemployment if they sought minimum compensation.

A Great Hardship

Mr. DelMonte said that Foxwoods’ refusal to negotiate paid leave has “caused our members and the other 4,000 workers at Foxwoods a great hardship as well as overloading our state’s unemployment system.”

The previous contract between unionized workers and Foxwoods expired on December 31, 2019, but its terms remain in force until a new agreement is negotiated. Neither side has provided information on the progress of ongoing discussions over new contract terms.

In response to Local 2121’s criticism over the furloughs, Foxwoods President and CEO John James said that the unprecedented situation forces them to make business decisions that are based on a number of factors “including the safety of our Team Members and guests as well as the requirements and/or guidance of executive orders/requests from the Governor and other state leaders.”

Mr. James went on that they recognize and respect their duty to bargain and that they will continue their obligation, but they “also have to be nimble as things develop rapidly.” The executive promised that they will try to do what is best for their employees and the business in order to all come out of the situation in a manner that will allow them to recover.

Most workers at the other Connecticut casino, Mohegan Sun, have, too, been placed on furlough following the property’s closure last week. The casino said that its team members will continue to receive health benefits as well as access to key services during the period of closure.

Source: Foxwoods’ unionized dealers furloughed along with rest of casino’s workers

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Gambling operators were ordered to shut down their betting shops around the UK as the country tightened social distancing restrictions in the face of the Covid-19 crisis.

Betting shops were part of the group of the non-essential businesses that were asked not to reopen Saturday morning alongside cafes, pubs, leisure centers, cinemas, and museums as the UK grapples to curb the advance of the coronavirus.

Betting shops around the UK are going dark as the dangerous virus that has gripped the world and dominates headlines has resulted in the postponement/cancellation of major sporting events, including Euro 2020 which is now set to take place in the summer of 2021.

Gambling companies running betting shops fear that the shutdown could last for up to two months. That paired with the fact that there are almost no sporting events bettors can place a punt on will come as a big hit to operators’ financial accounts at the end of the year.

William Hill announced earlier this week that it would suspend dividend as part of the measures it intends to take to mitigate the Covid-19 impact on its full-year EBITDA. The company said that it expects its group EBITDA to slump by £100-£110 million if horse racing kept going and betting shops remained open, and by an additional £25-£30 million per month if it was ordered to close its shops.

GVC, which operates the largest chain of betting shops in the UK, said that it estimates group EBITDA to be reduced by £130-£150 million, should betting shops remain open, and by an additional £45-£50 million per month if shops were ordered to close.

Bookmakers Welcome Closure

In response to the order to close its betting shops, GVC said Friday that it was “very welcome to now have clarity and reassurance from the government on this serious matter, as the safety and well-being of our colleagues and customers is of paramount importance.”

Irish gambling group Flutter Entertainment was the first bookmaker to announce the closure of its 350 betting shops around the country on Friday in response to the global coronavirus crisis.

The company, which runs Paddy Power-branded betting shops, said in a Friday statement that its facilities will remain closed until at least the end of April “to protect our retail employees and customers.”

The company added that “there is nothing more important than the safety and well-being of our colleagues and the public during this pandemic.” Flutter updated the market earlier this week, saying that it expects full-year EBITDA to fall by at least £90-£100 million and an additional £30 million per month should its betting shops close.

It also emerged this week that the Republic of Ireland is closing its betting shops, as well, to help contain the spread of the deadly virus. Facilities owned by Flutter and BoyleSports, among other bookmakers, will remain shuttered for at least two weeks.

Source: All UK betting shops to close as part of mass shutdown of premises

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