The French government has put plans to legalize online casinos on hold due to resistance from the country’s physical casino industry and gambling addiction prevention organizations.
France remains one of just two European Union countries, along with Cyprus, that prohibits online casinos. Despite this, the Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) estimates that three million French residents had gamble online in 2023 via offshore platforms.
The government estimates that allowing online casinos will produce €1 billion ($1 billion) in tax revenue each year while also providing greater gaming regulation, including systems to identify and assist individuals exhibiting signs of addiction.
However, Casinos de France, a trade association representing the country’s 200 physical casinos, claims that legalizing would have a significant impact on the business, potentially decreasing revenues by 20% to 30% and pushing approximately one-third of casinos to close.
Such closures, the group fears, could result in the loss of 15,000 jobs and a significant fall in tax contributions.
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Casinos de France has proposed that any online gambling licenses be limited to operators of physical casinos in the country. Physical casinos generate €2.7 billion ($2.76 billion) of the €13.4 billion ($13.6 billion) in pre-tax earnings from legally operated gambling activities in 2023.
Additional gambling choices include the state-regulated Pari Mutuel Urbain (PMU), which focuses mostly on horse racing, and the French Loto, which was privatized and is now available online for players in France and Monaco.
The French Loto received €21 billion ($21.45 billion) in bets in 2023, with €14.5 billion ($14.8 billion) refunded as winners. Of the remaining €6.5 billion, €4.2 billion ($4.29 billion) went to taxes and social security.
Meanwhile, the PMU, which has been authorized to operate online since 2010, declared a net profit after tax of €800 million ($817 million) last year, which it reinvested in horse racing and trotting organizations.
France’s gaming regulations have developed throughout time. Casinos were initially restricted to tourist cities and spa resorts, with a 1919 prohibition on casino operations within 100 kilometers of Paris to protect workers from vice.
This limitation was later lifted for several spa towns, like Enghien-les-Bains, which remains a popular gambling destination near the capital.
A 1988 law authorized the establishment of casinos in larger cities without a tourism concentration, resulting in the current landscape of 200 casinos. These range from sumptuous to more utilitarian locations, like as Bordeaux’s big casino, which is housed in a warehouse-style building.
Online gambling, while limited, is not new in France. The privatized Loto started delivering internet services some 15 years ago, and the PMU expanded its online activities in 2010, including betting on other sports and online poker.
The government had intended to expedite online casino law by a decree, but the plan was abandoned late last year for further consideration. This halt comes as stakeholders express worries about the possible economic and societal impact of legalizing internet gambling.
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