The British player protection organisation GambleAware published its list of donations for the first quarter of this year a few days ago. According to this, GambleAware benefited from donations totalling the equivalent of just over 350,000 euros during this period. But how satisfactory is such an amount in view of the fact that several gambling companies, some of them worth billions, could donate?
The documentary ‘Attack on amateur football - the greed of the betting industry’, which was shown on ARD on 19 August 2024 after the DFB Cup broadcast, has caused a considerable stir: both parts of the betting industry and the sport have drawn the consequences. Now the controversy has moved to a new level: the German Sports Betting Association accuses the report of misleading viewers.
The founder of the British airline easyJet recently launched a new sports betting brand on the market. The offer is initially only aimed at players from the UK. But what are the reasons that prompted the easyJet founder to enter the betting business and when will German betting customers be able to register with EasyBet?
Illegal gambling seems to be practically omnipresent. There are heaps of unregulated casinos or betting providers on the Internet - and in the real world, too, new reports of shady sports matches, casinos operating in the black or manipulated gambling are published almost daily. The police in Frankfurt am Main recently launched a special operation in response to the increasing number of unauthorised gaming machines in the city. They destroyed no fewer than 45 of these hacked machines to send out a clear signal.
One of the declared main objectives of any gambling licence system is to encourage as many users as possible to use precisely those casinos, betting providers, lotteries, etc. that are licensed in the respective country. The so-called channelling rate, which shows how high this proportion is, is therefore one of the most important indicators of the success or failure of a regulatory project. This is also the case in the Netherlands, where new figures have recently been published showing that more than a respectable 87 per cent of players gamble legally.
A few days ago, there was a large-scale raid in tranquil East Frisia and Friesland involving the police, customs and the public prosecutor's office. A total of around 400 officers were involved in the operation. But were any arrests made during the large-scale raid and what evidence was seized?
US gambling companies are known for making a grand entrance - especially when they come from Las Vegas. BetMGM, a digital bookmaker and online casino whose platform belongs to the legendary MGM Resorts International with dozens of entertainment hotels in the USA and worldwide, is undoubtedly a prime example of this genre. For some time now, the company has also been focussing on European markets. The brand recently went live in Sweden with a wide range of innovative offers. But that is not the end of the story. In fact, the company is also active in Germany in a slightly different form.
A man in Dornstadt near Ulm caused several tens of thousands of euros worth of damage while parking. After manoeuvring back and forth several times, the 57-year-old accidentally stepped on the accelerator and drove at high speed into an amusement arcade in front of the car.
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is already an international phenomenon. The tournaments are watched all over the world and the pros have hundreds of thousands of fans. So far, however, the events have mainly taken place on US soil, which is now apparently changing. It is reported that the WSOP is aiming for a large-scale expansion that will also anchor it more firmly in Europe. For players, this means easier participation and new match formats. Poker enthusiasts will get all the more exciting entertainment.
Whether online or offline - the Irish like to gamble a lot. This makes it all the more astonishing that the island's gambling laws are inadequate and outdated in many respects. The last comprehensive revision actually took place in 1956, and a new direction has been debated for years, which should then also include digital offerings. Now it seems that the time has finally come: In mid-October, the Gambling Regulation Bill was passed by the lower house of the Irish parliament Dáil Éireann and is set to come into force in 2024. The regulations are among the strictest in Europe.
The International Criminal Police Organisation, better known as Interpol, struck a major blow against illegal gambling around a fortnight ago. More than 5,100 people are said to have been arrested in the course of the extensive investigations. Betting fraud was at the centre of the investigation. But how did Interpol track down the suspects?
Sports betting is a gigantic market, the international scale of which remains hidden from most people. A recent ARD documentary shows that the business is flourishing in Asia in particular - often under questionable conditions. Licenses are usually not available and betting fraud seems to be the order of the day. Experts estimate the turnover from illegal activities alone at well over 1 trillion euros - a figure with 13 digits! In the midst of this, Bundesliga clubs have partnerships with various dubious betting sites and presumably profit handsomely from the hustle and bustle.
In hardly any other country are so many people affected by gambling addiction as in Australia. The aim now is to fight the new ‘widespread disease’ and work on the gambling behaviour of Australians. But how precarious is the situation with problem gambling behaviour in the faraway Down Under?
For most fans, the appeal of poker lies in the subtle interplay of strategy, skill, psychological strength and patience. Those who are well-positioned in these areas and understand the dynamics of the classic card game can not only achieve exciting successes, but also rake in considerable winnings. However, as in so many areas of life, digital technologies are ensuring that human skill is no longer as important as it used to be. In fact, so-called poker bots now offer active support that massively increases your own chances. The organised use of such software is expected to increase.
Video games and gambling are actually two different things. Sometimes, however, the two worlds are mixed together. This is the case with ‘Peglin’, a rogue-like with key elements from classic Japanese slot machines. The game from Red Nexus was released back in 2022, but was only released a few weeks ago for the Nintendo Switch, which is primarily aimed at young target groups. Could there be problems here due to the gambling nature of the game?
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