Germany and Spain make decisions on online casino wagering

Posted under Casino News by Online Casino Keeper

The situation with online casino wagering is ambiguous not only in the USA, but also in Europe. There different countries have different attitude towards online casinos and thus behave differently as well. Today Germany and Spain casinos are in the news, as the questions with legality of gambling sites is on the agenda there.

As for Germany, there the State Gambling Treaty lapses on January, 1, 2012. This bill prohibited online gambling at the territory of the country. And the other day the decision makers of 16 federal states met together to discuss the future of this treaty. It was offered to prolong the jurisdiction of ban after 2010, but mutual agreement wasn’t signed.

All German states are divided into three camps. The first one involves Social Democrat-governed states, including Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia, which wants to leave state monopoly on sports betting, as it is now. The other group of five Christian Democrat Party-led states would like the government to open the market for private sports betting operators. And the third group, which consists of the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, is the most players-friendly one. It would like to give licences to private sports betting, casino and poker operators.

So perhaps, it will result in “domino effect”, when at some states online gambling will be legal, and in the others it will remain under prohibition law.

As for Spain, it appears to be next country ready for legalizing online casinos. The draft bill is already ready, and it will be taken for consideration to Parliament early next year. Online casino and poker operators are glad with this initiative, which will give them freedom and profit. The only question remained concerns taxation. There is the rumor that sports betting industry will be taxed on a turnover, what is a wrong approach in the eyes of operators.

Agustin Torres, Secretary of Spanish Association of Online Gamblers (AEDAPI) pointed out that taxing a turnover won’t allow offering competitive products at the market. Torres added, “AEDAPI estimates that more than €100 million in sponsorship and advertising revenue is currently invested each year by the major European sports betting operators in Spain, and this is at risk under this proposal.” And the other disadvantage is products made by unregulated operators, which may enter the market.

Nevertheless, the news is good in general. So next year online casino players in Europe may find legal gambling sites in Spain and partly in Germany.