The European Court of Justice (CJEU) has ruled that Italy must revise rules applied to extending the licences of bingo concessions.
The Court has sided with appeals filed by Italian bingo franchises made against Italy’s Custom and Monopolies Agency (ADM) and the technical conditions and operating criteria it applied for licence renewals.
Italy’s bingo franchises had complained that the ADM had granted licence extensions to existing concessions without conducting a competitive tender process, violated EU principles of fairness and equality of business contracts.
During 2023, Italian courts allowed the government to extend expiring licences for land-based gambling venues (including bingo), for an interim period of 31 December 2024.
The extension was granted to help the government settle on the terms of the “Decree to Reorganise Gambling”, initiated as a federal mandate in 2024.
Despite the authorisation, the ADM was accused of imposing unfair demands on bingo franchises as a condition for renewing their licences. Franchise operators were forced to pay increased monthly fees, regardless of their turnover or profitability.
Beyond the increased fees, franchise operators were subjected to additional restrictions, including a ban on relocating their premises. The ADM forced franchises to accept the terms of its ‘extension regime’ to participate in future tenders, effectively coercing them to accept unfavourable terms.
The CJEU determined that these measures breached the principles of free competition and equal treatment established by Directive 2014/23/EU. The directive mandates that the award of a public concession must follow transparent and competitive procedures to prevent unfair advantages and market distortions.
The Court ruled that the Italian government cannot unilaterally extend bingo concessions under unfair terms, nor impose unequal financial and operational requirements on concessionaires.
The decision is expected to impact the proceedings of the ADM in 2025. Currently, the government and the agency are negotiating terms to proceed with the second phase of the “Gambling Reorganisation Decree.”
The government is yet to present its final plan on how to initiate the application of new land-based gambling laws across Italy’s 20 administrative regions, which have demanded compensation and incentives to address the financial impact of changes sought on local communities.
