Germany.- The northern state of Schleswig-Holstein has become the first of Germany’s 16 federal states to allow commercial gaming operators to offer live casino and table games. It’s issued licences to Tipico, BluBet, Cashpoint and SkillOnNet. 

Until now these verticals in online casino in Germany have been restricted to state-run companies. That’s because the gambling reforms of 2021, which introduced regulated online gambling, allowed states the option to allow their lotteries a monopoly over the segments. That contrasts with online slots and poker, which are regulated at the federal level by the new national gambling regulator, the GGL.

Schleswig-Holstein’s move is intended to reduce the risk of players turning to unlicensed gambling. The new licensees must adopt player protection requirements.

Sabine Sütterlin-Waack

Minister for the interior Sabine Sütterlin-Waack said: “By allowing an attractive online offering, we want to prevent players from resorting to illegal offers if they want to play the games they know from casinos online. This strengthens legal gambling.” 

The sports betting trade association Deutscher Sportwettenverband (DSWV) has called for a review of German gambling legislation due to concerns that the black market continues to loom large. The GGL has estimated that illegal gambling accounted for up to 4 per cent of German gross gambling revenue in 2023. Its annual report states that the regulated market generated €13.7bn in GGR, a rise of 2 per cent year-on-year.

Online gambling accounted for 8 per cent (€400m) and sports betting 13 per cent (€1.8bn). Meanwhile, the regulator estimates that the black market generated GGR of between €400m and €600m.