Germany: Hans-Jörn Arp and Wolfgang Kubicki on the issue of sports betting licenses

Hesse has admitted that the Inter-State Treaty on Gambling (GlüStV) has failed – now, Minister President Albig will have to see to it that the Schleswig-Holstein model is implemented

Published on 03 September 2014

After the admission by the Hesse Ministry of the Interior that the GlüStV does not promote the objective of curtailing illegal sports betting, Schleswig-Holstein gaming expert Hans-Jörn Arp and the head of the FDP parliamentary group, Wolfgang Kubicki, have requested that Minister President Torsten Albig now see to it that the Schleswig-Hostein model is implemented on the national level:

“The federal state assigned by the gaming committee with the issue of the 20 licenses has now given up. One cannot be state more clearly that the Treaty has failed than the Hesse Minister of the Interior in his reply to a parliamentary inquiry regarding the structure and duration of the proceedings (printed matter 19/446)”, Arp said in Kiel today (03 September).

The printed matter states as follows (on page 3):

“The limitation of the number of licenses has proven to be highly complicated, prone to disputes and long-winded. However, it has in particular not promoted the objective of curtailing illegal sports betting, but, quite the opposite, has prejudiced this objective. Due to the protracted, extraordinarily time-consuming and legally often contested system of limited licenses, sports betting in the illegal area has in the meantime become more and more extensive, without serious steps being able to be taken against this.”

“I only feel sorry for the Hesse civil servants. They, on behalf of the 16 federal states, have been trying in vain to lawfully implement this nonsense for over two years. But that is obviously impossible”, Kubicki said.

In July, the Hesse Ministry of the Interior had already announced that it now expects that after the issue of the 20 licenses planned for 18 September the 21 unsuccessful applicants will file legal action. This will once more delay the issue of the licneses.

This is why the evaluation date, which had already been postponed, and which is scheduled for November, will not be able to be complied with.

“How could the Minister Presidents evaluate a Treaty if they cannot even issue licenses after more than two years?” asks the head of the Schleswig-Holstein FDP parliamentary group.

He said that the answer by the Hesse Ministry of the Interior confirms all warnings to which the Minister Presidents had turned a deaf ear.

“The GlüStV merely is a stimulus package for illegal providers. We have said from the beginning that better player protection cannot be achieved in this way,” Arp says.

Arp and Kubicki once more call on the Minister President to finally take over the Schleswig-Holstein model:
“Our model is easier, accepted by the honest providers, combats the illegal providers and money laundering, and has already been reviewed by the EU Commission. It works, protects the players, and generates revenue for the state.”

The CDU and FDP parliamentary groups expressly support the position of the parliamentary group of Die Grünen in the Hesse parliament, who are in favour not only of an abolition of the limitation of the number of licences and its replacement by quality criteria for the issue of the licences, but also of an extension of this principle to casino games and poker:

“This means that Die Grünen in Hesse practically support our Schleswig-Holstein model. Die Grünen in Schleswig-Holstein would be well advised to endorse this judicious suggestion.”