Lottoland Ordered to Cease German Operations

A German district court in Koblenz has ordered lottery betting operator Lottoland to cease its operations within the country, in a hefty blow for the company.

The ruling states that the operator is not authorised to offer services to German players due to the State Treaty on Gaming in the country, and must immediately cease advertising and operations in Germany.

About the case

The case was brought before the court by Rhineland-Palatinate State Lottery, Lotto Rheinland-Pfalz GmbH, and was countered by Lottoland who claimed that the State Treaty on Gaming in Germany actively goes against European Union (EU) law.

On these grounds, Lottoland attempted to get the case suspended in the district court and moved to the EU’s Court of Justice (ECJ) but the request was denied.

Explaining this decision, the court explained that Lottoland was not governed by EU law on lottery monopolies, because Lottoland is not, in fact a lottery operation, instead, offering the ability to bet on the outcome of lotteries.

The court also ruled that Lottoland’s offering was a danger to players and did not offer suitable protections.

What happens now?

This is a severe ruling for Lottoland, which considered Germany one of its core markets, with the biggest ever Lottoland winner being a Berlin local who scooped a €90 million jackpot.

The ruling states that Lottoland must open its books to scrutiny and compensate Lotto Rheinland-Pfalz GmbH for depriving the company of potential customers, and therefore gambling stakes.

This is a big knock back for Lottoland, who are one of the biggest names in the lottery betting industry.

While European operations in general won’t be affected, the loss of the German market is likely to have a huge impact, in the short term at least on Lottoland’s financial situation.