[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1 link=same] [bsa_pro_ad_space id=2]

Skip to Content

Operator News

Czech – Crackdown proving profitable for Czech government

By - 4 August 2017

The gambling sector in Czech Republic increased by 29 per cent in 2016, generating GGR of CZK 39.3bn (US $1.78bn) in 2016.

The results reversed a slump the previous year where gambling revenues fell by three per cent. The government’s gambling tax increased by 38 per cent year-on-year to CZK 10.5bn.

Deputy Finance Minister Ondřej Závodský attributed the increase to the government’s crackdown on illegal gambling outlets. He said the government has reduced the number of slot machines on Czech streets by 20,000 in the last three years, closing around 300 illegal slot halls in the process. The crackdown online has seen 50 international operators leave the market voluntarily leaving just five operators behind with only one of these, Stars Group, being an international company. Online players must register their accounts in person, which has proved problematic for international operators. The government has authorised its a Czech Point system, a network of 7,500 public administration centers, to allow online signups.

A further crackdown has seen the Czech Ministry of Finance set maximum hourly losses for both online and land-based gambling. The ministry has calculated a mathematical formula to determine the maximum hourly losses that are permitted based on the stake involved, the maximum number of games per hour and the average payout.

Share via
Copy link