Michiel Groothuizen named as next Chair of the Netherlands Gambling Authority
Michel Groothuizen has been named as the new chair of the board of directors of the Netherlands Gambling Authority. Groothuizen will succeed outgoing Chair, René Jansen from July 1, 2024. Jansen will be retiring due to reaching pensionable age.
Jansen's successor, Groothuizen is currently serving as the Deputy Director General of the Custodial Institutions Agency. Between 2001 and 2015, Groothuizen was employed at the Ministry of Justice and Security in various roles, during which time he was also closely involved with the establishment of the Netherlands Gambling Authority in 2012.
Dutch football club cancels outdoor advertising following warning
Dutch football club PEC Zwolle has decided to retract a proposed outdoor ad featuring an image of its club captain on a city building after receiving a warning from the Netherlands Gambling Authority.
In the proposed image, the club captain, Bram van Polen, would be wearing a shirt featuring the name and logo of online casino operator Circus.nl.
After becoming aware of the club's plans, the Netherlands Gambling Authority warned that the proposed display would not be considered sports sponsorship (which is allowed until 2025) but rather untargeted advertising for online gambling.
Consequently, the football club chose to withdraw the intended advertisement.
Reminder: Gaming in Holland to co-host regulatory sessions at 2024 Casino Operations Summit
On Tuesday, April 23, 2024, Gaming in Holland will be co-hosting several regulatory-themed sessions at the upcoming Casino Operations Summit in Amsterdam.
In these sessions, we will take a deeper look at the current state of the Dutch land-based market and identify areas in particular need of regulatory modernization.
Confirmed speakers include:
René Jansen, Chair, Netherlands Gambling Authority
Jason Frost, President, Euromat
Petra de Ruiter, CEO, Holland Casino
Henry Meijdam, Chair, VAN Kansspelen
Einar Waegemaekers, Managing Partner, Reac
Other speakers TBA
The Gaming in Holland sessions are exclusively available to representatives of Netherlands-licensed operators or their suppliers. If you would like to attend, please register for the 2024 Casino Operations Summit.
GiH partners and sponsors have free access to this part of the Casino Operations Summit's program. Please email Lucien Wijsman at Registrations@CasinoOperationsSummit.net for more details.
Upcoming events
The following event(s) may be of interest to the GiH community.
Kindred's annual Sustainable Gambling Conference will be held March 20, 2024, at the Kia Oval in London.
The 2024 Casino Operations Summit, which focuses on land-based casino operations, will take place April 23-25 in Amsterdam.
The 2024 Gaming in Spain Conference returns to Madrid on May 6, 2024.
The 2024 Gaming on Holland Conference, which is scheduled for June 6, 2024, will feature Netherlands Gambling Authority Chair, René Jansen and Kindred CEO, Nils Andén as conference keynote speakers.
The 14th European Conference on Gambling Studies and Policy Issues, organized by the European Association for the Study of Gambling (EASG), will be held September 10-13, 2024, in Rome, Italy.
The 2024 Gaming in Germany Conference returns to Berlin on November 5, 2024. Save the date!
Debate on Dutch iGaming regulations to focus on cross-operator deposit limits
On Thursday, March 7, the Permanent Committee for Justice and Security questioned Minister for Legal Protection, Franc Weerwind on the current state of the Dutch gambling market.
The main takeaways of this debate are as follows:
Although always a long shot, a parliamentary majority to undo the legalization of online gambling (an idea that has been aggressively pushed by certain political groups) appears to be out of reach.
Minister Weerwind received little to no pushback on his refusal to consider a full ban on online gambling advertising.
Weerwind declined to address questions on the role of Google in promoting illegal gambling offers. This could indicate that the Dutch government is awaiting joint EU action (in accordance with the bloc's Digital Services Act).
There appears to exist broad parliamentary support – at least in theory – for cross-operators deposit limits.
Based on these points, it is reasonable to assume that cross-operator limits will be the next big issue facing licensed gambling operators.
If found technically feasible, the introduction of such limits can be expected as early as 2025. Major questions that need to be resolved prior to the introduction of such limits are the height of this limit and whether this limit can be increased following affordability checks. We predict that these issues will be the industry's key challenges in 2024 and beyond.
The debate also provided a rough roadmap of what to expect regarding political developments in the coming year:
April(?) – Brief plenary debate on gambling policy. Expect additional parliamentary motions.
Second half of April – Government to send letter on match-fixing and match-fixing prevention.
May 1 – Entry into force of the Netherlands Gambling Authority's new player protection rules.
Second half of May – Government to send progress report on cross-operator deposit limits, proposed steps against Malta's Bill 55, and potential support from banks/the Office for Credit Registration (BKR) to help protect players.
Second half of May – Government to send letter outlining next steps following recent court ruling questioning the legal tenability of the Netherlands’ remaining land-based monopolies (Lotton, instant lotteries, and land-based sports betting).
Q3/Q4 2024 – Parliamentary evaluation of Remote Gambling Act.
Q4 2024 – Entry into force of the Ministry of Justice and Security's new player protection rules.
2025(?) – Likely introduction of cross-operator deposit limits.
Other news
Novomatic’s digital gaming and entertainment division Greentube has launched with One Casino in the Netherlands.
Entain has reportedly hired bankers to prepare a sale of PartyPoker as it seeks to fend off activist investors by reinvigorating its core operations. The sale is expected to fetch around £150m.
Betsson Group has set out plans to expand its presence in Italy with the launch of its flagship Betsson brand in the country.