The Implementation of Spanish Gambling Laws May be Delayed

The endless soap opera that we know as the 'introduction of the new Spanish gambling laws' may be stretching on for still quite some time. There seems to be no guarantee that the enacted changes will be implemented in one take.

Recent reports suggest that there should be additional stages of implementation. Online betting exchange approval in particular should be delayed. This means that those wishing to bet on sports in Spain online would have to wait a little longer to do so legally.

One of the upcoming online sportsbooks in Spain seems to be affected the most by the delay. Afikus Rodriguez had the following to say: "We see this as a three-fold problem for Betfair. First, & most obviously, if this approach is adopted, then on regulation Betfair is likely to lose most of its 4 percent or so of core revenue from Spain as well as its key USP, even if it gets a license for other products; given the high fixed cost base & capex, the impact on free cash flow would be material, in our view.”

"Secondly, Betfair may not get early certainty on when exchanges will be allowed & under what terms, making forward investment in the market & product difficult. Finally, competing against more settled betting brands & products (with incumbent lobbying power) is likely to be far less attractive than being part of an early regulated 'land-grab', leveraging an existing '.com' presence."

Analytical report state that France and Italy, and possibly Germany, Cyprus and Greece don’t feel too enthusiastic about the betting exchanges. Betfair even complained to the European Commission about its unfair exclusion from the Greek market.