Policymakers in Poland argue against iGaming liberalisation, pointing to growing black markets across Europe. But lobbyists warn the monopoly model is not as protective as they think.<\/p>\n
Across much of Europe, gambling policy has entered a defensive phase. Regulators from the Nordics to southern Europe are tightening advertising rules, revisiting tax\u00a0rates\u00a0and grappling with an uncomfortable trend: lower\u00a0channelisation\u00a0and a resurgent black market<\/a>. <\/p>\n Against that backdrop, calls to\u00a0liberalise\u00a0a market can sound misaligned to some. Yet in Poland \u2014 and, by extension, across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) \u2014 the debate runs in precisely that direction.\u00a0<\/p>\n Poland: A hybrid model under strain?<\/p>\n Poland\u2019s gambling regime is unusual by EU standards. Land-based casinos, bingo\u00a0halls\u00a0and slot machines\u00a0operate\u00a0under\u00a0licences. Online sports betting is open to private operators, although subject to a 12% turnover tax. Online casino, however,\u00a0remains\u00a0the exclusive domain of Total Casino, run by the state-owned Totalizator\u00a0Sportowy.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe Polish gambling market is legally unusual,\u201d says Piotr\u00a0Palutkiewicz, general director of the Warsaw Enterprise Institute. He accepts the original logic. \u201cI can understand why lawmakers introduced this model around nine years ago. At that time, online gambling was still relatively new in Poland, and\u00a0perhaps the\u00a0government believed a monopoly would protect consumers from addiction.\u201d But, he argues, \u201cafter nine years, we see that this has proven to be an illusion\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n The illusion, in his telling, is control, \u201cbecause it is technically impossible to eliminate offshore operators\u201d. Poland\u00a0maintains\u00a0a blacklist of banned domains \u2014 \u201caround 55,000 websites have been blocked\u201d. Yet, as he notes, this is \u201ca cat-and-mouse game\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n His statement echoes points made in a panel held last April as part of the European Economic Congress<\/a>, which\u202fcalled for an end to Poland\u2019s monopoly over iGaming.\u00a0Zdzislaw\u00a0Kostrubala,\u00a0president of\u00a0Poland\u2019s gambling trade association,\u00a0Graj\u00a0Legalnie,\u00a0called the monopoly model an\u00a0\u201canachronism\u201d\u00a0in today\u2019s world.\u00a0<\/p>\n The numbers are stark, highlights\u00a0Piotr\u00a0Palutkiewicz:\u00a0\u201cToday, around 40% of the online casino market in Poland belongs to grey or [unlicensed] operators. Even more striking, approximately 83% of individuals who play online casino games have accounts on illegal platforms.\u201d Many, he says, are\u00a0unaware that only one platform is legal.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cInitially, the grey market was close to 100%. Now\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0around 40%.\u201d But growth in\u00a0channelisation\u00a0appears to have plateaued. \u201cIn recent years, the monopoly\u2019s market share has\u00a0remained\u00a0relatively stable. Meanwhile, the overall market is growing by\u00a0roughly 11%\u00a0year-on-year.\u201d\u00a0This stagnation is central to the\u00a0liberalisation\u00a0argument. Yet, it is also the point at which Poland\u2019s reformers run into Europe\u2019s changing mood.\u00a0<\/p>\n Lobbying in a politically hostile climate?<\/p>\n In much of Western Europe,\u00a0liberalisation\u00a0has been followed by\u00a0by\u00a0regulatory retrenchment. Tighter advertising rules<\/a>\u00a0and rising taxes<\/a>\u00a0in some\u00a0jurisdictions coincided with declining\u00a0channelisation\u00a0and increased offshore activity. For Polish policymakers, this offers a convenient ammunition for their argument: why dismantle a monopoly if competitive markets elsewhere are struggling?\u00a0<\/p>\n