UK sportsbook giant Ladbrokes has suffered a new blow in its battle with the Dutch betting monopoly with a court confirming a ban on the firm from taking bets from The Netherlands.
The decision by the Dutch Supreme Court follows a summary ruling in February, which forced Ladbrokes to block customers with a Dutch IP address.
Ladbrokes said it was already preparing its case for an appeal, which it expects will be heard later this year.T
he long running legal case stems from a dispute between Ladbrokes and the state betting operator De Lotto.
De Lotto claimed Ladbrokes was acting illegally by accepting bets from Dutch citizens, and the ruling could now lead to similar action being taken against other egaming operators.
Ladbrokes Managing Director eGaming John O’Reilly said he was not surprised at the ruling and vowed to continue to fight on.
“Our aim has always been to appeal this case until it is heard in the European Court of Justice, as we have always accepted that in the context of Dutch Law we will lose,” O’Reilly said.
“We believe that betting is subject to Article 49 of the Treaty of Rome as other goods and services are.”
“We hope that this case will be another step on the way to a European free market in betting.”
source : egr magazine
