Brandenburg Makes Slight Touches to Gambling Framework

With the German’s Treaty on gambling coming into effect in 2021, all federal states have hurried to update their own regulatory language.

Brandenburg Offers Quick Gambling Update to Comply with Treaty

With the new Glücksspielneuregulierungstaatsvertrag (GlüNeuRStv) treaty fast-approaching, German federal states have been eager to fall in line. The German State of Brandenburg is the latest to update its own regulatory framework and align it better with the oncoming big overhaul of the industry.

Brandenburg will freshen up the Casino Act of 2007 to now include online casino games, which will be a staple of the upcoming regulatory change. The state has taken the opportunity to carry out a thorough update of some dated clauses regarding sports betting as well as gaming arcades.

Private lottery draws which do not exceed $46,500 worth of tickets sold or estimated €40,000 will be allowed to take place. However, the state would expect betting shops and arcades to now be separated by at least 500 meters distance in between.

Introducing Restrictions and Charting a Course for the Future

The Treaty itself will introduce some specific and widely-felt changes to the industry at large. For once, the limit per spin bet has been adjusted to €1 something that Brandenburg did not reflect in its own overhaul, but only because the Treaty is outranking any federal regulation.

Slots must also be offered separately from table games. Some changes will apply to the sports betting segment as well. For example, the live betting or in-play markets will be limited down to winner and next-scorer markets.

Players will be restricted to around $1,110 monthly spending limit or around €1,000 in local currency. However, the Treaty also allows for a case-by-case review, which would allow players to apply for those limited to be lifted to $11,110.

The current Treaty is replacing the Third State Treaty, which is the current legislation in effect. GlüNeuRStV may be coming but it has not been yet ratified, with 13 out of the country’s 16 states’ approval needed for the Treaty to pass. If anything, though, a transitional period has been negotiated.

The changes in regulation have been submitted to the European Commission which oversees broader changes in Member States’ existing regulatory framework on gambling.

Another Member State, Spain, also has been undergoing a review of its gambling industry. The country rolled out specific measures to cope with the pandemic, but then expanded on those measures and decided to incorporate the measures into a more permanent capacity, submitting them to the European Commission for review.