The Advocate General of the European Court, Yves Bot has given his oppinion about the Dutch state monopoly on online gambling and betting, his oppinion may change the outcome of the lawsuit against the monopoly of the Netherlands dramatically.

UK online casinos and betting operators Betfair and Ladbrokes filed a case against the Dutch with the European Court of justice, against the Dutch monopoly on online casinos and sports betting, which goes against some of the rules of the European Treaty. The European treaty is designed for a open and fair market in the EU, providing residents of member countries with the best possible products, prices and services to choose from, including services such as online gambling. But the opinion of Bot goes against that principle, Bot is a proponent of monopoly’s on online casino gambling. Bot said that countries have the right to maintain their monopolies, provided that it is intended to protect against gambling addiction. Bot’s opinion is not binding but can affect the outcome of the case. The case is that of Ladbrokes and Betfair, 2 of the UK’s largest online sports betting companies, against the Dutch monopoly on online casinos and gambling. Bot said Dutch are within their EU rights to grant a single gambling license to state-operated De Lotto, and to refuse either licensing or the participation of residents to Internet gambling operators licensed and regulated elsewhere in the EU. This goes against previous rulings of the court which had determined that a legitimate reason is needed to refuse a license holder to offer his services. In a statement John O’Reilly, Executive Director of Ladbrokes said: “There is no logic in the fact that the Dutch monopoly could freely compete against us in the U.K., but we are prevented from accepting bets from any Dutch resident that finds us on the Internet.” A spokesman for Betfair said: “Dutch consumers should have the right to access Betfair’s English language Web site.” Many operators of online casinos and online gambling say that countries in the EU use the excuse of protecting the public as a sham to rationalize protectionist methods of avoiding competition, while the people are the true victims of it. There is no official ruling in the case against the Dutch gambling monopoly, though in the past EU court has made a decision within six months after such a statement by an advocate general.

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