Germany’s latest shot at a comprehensive framework for regulating internet sports betting has been dealt a setback after lawmakers in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein voted against the measure.
Leaders of the country’s 16 states approved amendments to the so-called Interstate Treaty on Gambling back in March that raise the number of possible licenses to 40 from the original 20 to satisfy competitive concerns voiced by the European Commission.
However, it was expected that Schleswig-Holstein would nix the agreement anyway because the state favors more liberal rules that would extend licensing to online casinos and poker sites in addition to bookmakers. Officials there contend that more betting licenses alone don’t do enough to meet EU free market rules.
The treaty was first formulated in 2012 to bring Germany into line with the EU’s expectation that member states will eliminate trade barriers within the Common Market. But it has yet to achieve a consensus from all 16 states on how best to comply with that.
