Gambling operator LeoVegas has submitted a European Union complaint against the Italian ban on gambling advertisements.
The legislation, which was given a green light in August, prohibits all gambling-related advertising and sponsorships within Italy. The ban has attracted tremendous criticism and opposition from the gambling industry since its approval.
Niklas Lindahl, Managing Director of LeoVegas Italy challenged the ban, which will come into effect in January 2019, and criticised that it would make the dominant market position of leading betting operators be “artificially maintained and perpetuated by a state measure”. He even branded the legislation as “insane” and said that it conflicted with EU law.
By filing the formal EU complaint, LeoVegas hopes to overturn the policy in the following 6 to 12 months.
The betting company argues that the prohibition will only be advantageous to established operators, who will have their marketing costs reduced, while “others will only experience the negative effects of the ban”.
Despite the upcoming legislation, Italy has gained a 19% increase in its combined revenue for retail and online sports betting last month. Yet, it remains to be discovered how revenue will be affected by the new policy.
