Gambling regulators from 14 EU Member States have written to the European Commission requesting that the Commission-mandated EU Expert Group on Gambling be reinstated. The decision to contact the European Commission was confirmed by René Jansen, Chairperson of the Dutch Gambling Authority in a webinar held by The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA), a lobby group for the regulated iGaming industry in Europe.
The EGBA has stated that it is fully behind regulators’ efforts to have the EU Expert Group on Gambling re-established as it will help gambling authorities in member states open clear lines of communication and cooperate more easily as it did in the past.
Before it was disbanded by the EU Commission in 2018, the Expert Group — which consisted of representatives from each member state’s gambling authority — provided gambling regulators with a platform to exchange information, work on joint initiatives, and share best practices.
In a statement on its website, the EGBA, noted:
“Europe’s gambling market is worth €100 billion each year, with many millions of Europeans playing, but the absence of the Expert Group means that, unlike any other consumer market, there is currently no formal framework for regulatory cooperation at EU-level.”
Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of the EGBA also said:
“There is currently no EU framework for gambling regulators to even communicate, let alone to jointly tackle the big issues affecting Europe’s online gambling sector. Most of these issues are cross-border in nature and require common solutions. We therefore welcome the strong commitment to regulatory cooperation and call to action from the majority of Europe’s gambling regulators. The message to the European Commission is clear: both gambling regulators and the sector itself are united in support of the Expert Group and call upon the Commission to reinstate the Expert Group.”
The EU Commission has yet to make a statement regarding the gambling authorities’ request or the EGBA’s statement.
Based in London, Natasha is a former sports journalist with experience working for some of the biggest athletes & brands in the world of sports and iGaming.