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Gaming law changes to sports betting regulations set the ground for the upcoming horse betting regulations that are meant to stop the decline of the horse betting market in Italy and boost its growth.
Italy has a very long and consolidated tradition in horse racing and all the main cities have or used to have their own racecourse. However, maybe also because of the growth of other sports, because of the financial crisis as well as a gaming law framework quite out-of-date, the Italian horse racing sector and therefore also the Italian horse betting market have faced a massive decline.
Such decline raised complaints from the main players of the horse racing market which led to the approval of the so called delega fiscale that empowered, among others, the Italian Government to put in place during the course of 2014 measures aimed at
“boosting the horse raicing sector and the offering of games on such events“
Pending such gaming law measures that are expected to be adopted in the next months, the Italian gambling authority has now held that it is no longer possible to offer bets on horse betting events that are not included in the official list issued by the regulator under the regulations governing sportsbetting customised bets.
Indeed, the peculiarity of Italy is that each type of game is subject to its specific gaming law provisions and quite often to a specific tax regime since the approval of the games has occurred in different periods. The sole exception related to the offering of the so called customised horse bets that could be offered under sports betting regulations, but this exception has now been removed.
This change that for some operators might look disappointing could on the contrary be seen as an anticipation of a new gaming law regime more favourable for horse betting which should consistency apply to both bets on events included in the list published by the gambling regulator and to customised horse bets. This will occur in a market where very few operators are investing at the moment, especially through online and mobile channels, creating new opportunities for late entrants.
I will follow the developments of the sector but, in the meantime, feel free to contact me, Giulio Coraggio to discuss. Also, if you want to receive my newsletter, please join my LinkedIn Group or my Facebook page. And follow me on Twitter, Google+ and become one of my friends on LinkedIn.
Image courtesy of Flickr by Dennis Forgione
