Gambling & sports betting: “When we have a few million gambling addicts in Germany, it will be too late”

Rand 1.3 million Germans between the ages of 16 and 70 bet on sports events at least once a year. This is the result of a study by the Institute for Interdisciplinary Addiction and Drug Research (ISD) and the Gambling Research Unit at the University of Bremen for the year 2021.

According to estimates by the German Sports Betting Association (DSWV), every adult in Germany will wager an average of more than eleven euros during the World Cup in Qatar (November 21 to December 18). With more than 69 million people over the age of 18, that would mean sales of at least 760 million euros. In 2021, around 9.4 billion euros were turned over in Germany. There are also a number of players who bet their money in digital casinos.

For Ulrich Mäurer (SPD) this is a big problem. Bremen’s interior senator is concerned about the social consequences of the betting boom and is campaigning for an advertising ban on providers. So far unsuccessful.

Question: Mr. Mäurer, the new State Treaty on Gaming has been in force since July 1, 2021. According to the German Sports Betting Association, around 240 companies also offer sports betting in Germany – but only 33 bookmakers currently have a nationwide license. Should the state take more rigorous action against the black market?

Ulrich Maurer: I look at the whole topic from a different perspective: What are the social consequences of sports betting in general? From the point of view of those affected, it does not matter whether they suffer damage because they take part in legal or illegal sports betting. Sports betting causes similar social problems as alcohol or drugs. That is why I am fundamentally against advertising for sports betting.

Question: Does the illegal provider pose a particularly great risk of gambling addiction, because the gambler can bet unlimited money, even on live bets every minute, and here the higher profits lure?

Walls: The question of whether it is a legal or illegal provider is of criminal importance. But the fact that according to the state contract only licensed companies are allowed to advertise does not improve the situation significantly. According to the latest studies, there are around 1.3 million gambling addicts in Germany and over three million gamers who are on the brink. Developments in recent decades have not been in the direction of curbing advertising for sports betting, as is the case with tobacco advertising. On the contrary: The sports betting area is expanding like crazy. The advertising boards in the stadiums of the Bundesliga and 2nd division are plastered with sports betting advertising. This costs the companies many millions of euros, and with such expenditures they are not primarily concerned with channeling the gamblers away from the black market.

Question: Rather?

Walls: Massive advertising is the vehicle for recruiting new customers among non-gamers, primarily young men with an affinity for sports and those interested in soccer, to whom it is suggested that betting is simply part of the game of soccer. And the secret message behind it is: If you know about football, then you can also bet. The social impact of this is significant. Because it is usually not the gambler alone who is affected, often the whole family is ruined. In other European countries such as Spain and Italy, advertising for sports betting is already prohibited for this reason.

Question: The State Treaty on Gambling expressly allows advertising because legal bookmakers can be identified in this way for the public.

Walls: I have a problem with the State Treaty on Gambling itself. It’s just a compromise. For a long time there was no united front of the 16 federal states. At that time, Schleswig-Holstein was the first state to opt out and issued its own licenses. There are a few small improvements in the area of ​​player protection in the state treaty, but it would have been more helpful to show betting providers clear limits, including when it comes to advertising. Also, most of the companies that hold a license largely negate the regulations.

Question: For example?

Walls: This affects, for example, the monthly deposit limit for the players (1000 Euro; d. Red.). The providers must contact LUGAS (Transnational gambling supervisory system; d. Red), i.e. connect to a central control system. Of over 30 licensed sports betting providers, only two have done so. Instead, these central player protection provisions are also being sued in court.

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Question: At the conference of interior ministers you failed with your plan to ban advertising. Is that the end of the matter for you?

Walls: Not at all, this will be a lengthy fight that will require a lot of stamina. I will continue to drive the issue forward and I also believe that we will get support from the federal government’s new drug commissioner (Burkhard Blienert; d. Red.), who shares our assessment. We are facing major challenges and time is of the essence: once we have a few million gamblers in Germany, it will be too late.

Question: Are the Netherlands good as a role model for Germany in the fight against the black market? After an inspection by the authorities, the majority of the around 150 providers without a license have taken measures to prevent Dutch gamblers from continuing to use their offers for fear of criminal prosecution.

Walls: I’m a big believer in crackdown. From July of this year, the Joint Gaming Authority of the States (GGL) based in Saxony-Anhalt will be responsible, and I hope that they will take much more consistent action against the illegal market than before. So far, consistent state action has unfortunately been the exception.

Question: Why is that?

Walls: The legal situation in our country is clear: the unauthorized organization of gambling is a criminal offence. But there were always problems in execution. In the past few years, we have witnessed countless legal proceedings by betting providers through all instances. The providers have exploited these opportunities mercilessly. In addition, for decades there was no uniform procedure in the federal states and some federal states have tolerated this practice for a long time. The individual countries therefore bear a large part of the blame for this fatal development. I really hope that GGL will do better now.

Question: The legal providers in Germany consider stricter action against the black market to be hopeless, since the Internet always offers opportunities to bet with illegal bookmakers around the world. Instead, they demand equal opportunities, for example in terms of the amount of bets and live bets, in order to make their own offer more attractive. Is that really the more promising way?

Walls: Equality on these issues is not a solution to the problem of gambling addiction. On the contrary: the illegal providers will always go one better, and so a disastrous spiral is set in motion.

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The interview was conducted for the sports competence center (WELT, “Sport Bild”, “Bild”) and first published in “Sport Bild”.