Olympic Set to Lose Seven Riga Casinos

Sun, Jun 3, 2018

The government of Latvia’s capital city has declared its historic central district off limits to gaming and has given operators four years to comply. Olympic Entertainment, the Baltics’ largest operator, is fighting the ban in court—so far, without success.

Olympic Set to Lose Seven Riga Casinos

Olympic Entertainment Group has lost a court challenge to prevent the closure of a casino the company operates in Latvia’s capital of Riga.

The venue is one of seven Olympic machine gaming facilities slated to lose their licenses over the next five years following a Riga City Council decision to ban gambling from the central historic district. In all, some 42 gaming and betting venues are subject to the order.

Olympic said it will appeal the ruling.

Estonia-based, Tallinn-listed OEG is the leading operator in the Baltic States, with 94 casinos and betting outlets, and another 21 in Slovakia, Italy and Malta.

Counting its Riga flagship, Olympic Voodoo Casino, which does not fall under the ban, OEG operates 53 casinos in Latvia employing around 900 people. Its subsidiary there reported operating profit last year of €25 million (US$29.2 million) on revenues of €69 million.

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