The European Betting & Gaming Association (EBGA) has called for greater enforcement of regulation in the EU single market.
This follows on from the European Commission publishing its action plan to do this. The EBGA has agreed that both the commission and member states are responsible for implementing and enforcing EU law.
Stronger cohesion needed
In particular, the EBGA pointed to the number of different gambling regulations across the EU. In the context of things, enforcing single-market regulations online was even more important.
The industry body released a press release on its website, in which it explained that the “single market cannot work properly without stronger enforcement of its rules.” It went on to add that this “is particularly needed in the online sphere, not least because EU citizens are spending more time online purchasing goods, services and engaging in entertainment activities, such as online gambling.”
The association also added the below, pointing to just how big iGaming in the Union is.
“The need for stronger enforcement is particularly clear in those sectors which are not yet harmonised, such as online gambling. The EU online gambling sector is worth €22.2 billion, and growing by 10% each year, but the 16.5 million Europeans who bet online experience 27 different sets of national online gambling policies.”
Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of the EBGA, also shared his thoughts.
“EGBA welcomes the Commission’s commitment to making the single market work but EU law should be enforced more strongly across all sectors, including online gambling.”
EU online gambling market growth
According to statistics released by the EBGA in December 2019, 43% of bets in 2018 were placed via mobile or tablet. That was an increase of 4% on 2017’s figure.
Sports betting was the most popular vertical, accounting for 42.5% of all online wagering. Meanwhile, casino was in second place – standing at 32.4%.
Other verticals, such as lottery and bingo, made up a smaller chunk of the market share.
Back then Haaijer again mentioned “the need for more consistent and strong consumer protections and industry standards across all EU countries.”
