CeJuego has called for the dismissal of Spain’s Consumer Affairs Minister over “selective bias” of data release on Spanish gambling fines and activities.
Spain’s leading gaming trade body, the Consejo Empresarial del Juego (CeJuego), has called for the dismissal of Pablo Bustinduy, Minister of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and the 2030 Agenda, and Mikel Arana Etxezarreta, Director General for the Regulation of Gambling (DGOJ).
The association accused both officials of making a “tendentious and selective use” of public data on regulatory sanctions, which it said had damaged the reputation of Spain’s licensed private gaming sector.
In a statement, CeJuego criticised the Ministry of Consumer Affairs for publishing, on 25 November, a list of fines issued to gambling operators during 2025 that excluded penalties imposed on the state-owned lottery operator, Sociedad Estatal Loterías y Apuestas del Estado (SELAE).
“The €126,000 fine against SELAE was included in the total figures cited by the DGOJ, yet the public operator’s name does not appear in the Ministry’s release,” CeJuego explained.
According to the DGOJ’s own database, SELAE was fined four times in December 2024 for allowing individuals on the national self-exclusion register to gamble via its website. CeJuego said this reflects the “lower level of oversight” applied to SELAE, which as a public operator is “subject to more lenient rules” than private firms.
CeJuego’s Director General, Alejandro Landaluce, said the incident “erodes the credibility of Spain’s legally established gaming market and distorts the facts.”
“It is unacceptable to use partial or misleading information to attack private operators while omitting relevant infractions committed by the public operator,” Landaluce stated.
The association further argued that the government acts as both “judge and party” in the sector, since it regulates private operators while also competing against them through SELAE — a situation CeJuego described as a conflict of interest that undermines fair competition.
CeJuego confirmed it will submit a formal complaint to the National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC), requesting the body’s intervention.
Sector backlash over “sensationalist” presentation
The trade body has also taken issue with the Ministry’s press release headline, which read:
“Consumer Affairs fines 26 gaming operators more than €3 million for serious violations: Betfair, 888, and Codere among those sanctioned.”
CeJuego said the framing “deliberately confuses” licensed and unlicensed operators, suggesting all fines were issued to regulated brands.
In reality, the association stated, fines imposed on licensed operators such as Betfair, 888, and Codere ranged between €17,500 and €125,000, while €30 million of the €33 million total corresponded to six unlicensed, illegal operators.
The trade body said the incident “illustrates the Ministry’s ongoing antagonism towards Spain’s regulated gaming industry — a sector that has consistently sought dialogue and cooperation with public authorities.”
CeJuego concluded its statement by formally calling for the resignation of Minister Bustinduy and DGOJ Director Arana, citing “a repeated pattern of conduct that misrepresents public data and undermines the integrity of Spain’s licensed gaming market.”
DGOJ prepares 2026 rollout of Royal Decree projects
Looking ahead, 2026 is expected to mark the implementation of several key projects under Spain’s Royal Decree on safer gambling environments, first outlined in 2023.
However, industry licensees have raised concerns that they have been instructed to prepare for technical and data-exchange changes without receiving finalised regulatory specifications from the DGOJ.
The regulator maintains that its roadmap includes the creation of a centralised player deposit-limit system, with caps set at €600 per day, €1,500 per week, and €3,000 per month, to ensure unified affordability controls across all licensed operators.
A central focus of the Decree is the development of an AI-driven responsible gambling algorithm designed to identify real-time behavioural indicators of gambling harm.
According to Director General Mikel Arana, the algorithm is expected to be completed by March 2026 and will become mandatory for all operators in the Spanish market. The DGOJ believes the project will make Spain the first European regulator to apply AI technology directly to customer intervention and harm prevention within online gambling.
