More than 35,000 volunteer for gambling ban

Debt, a legal decision or work are the main reasons that, last year, 35,390 players in Belgium asked to be banned from gambling sites or betting shops, according to Belgium's advisory body the Gaming Commission.

Some 643 people have also been forbidden to gamble at the request of a third party – for example a family member, its annual report shows.

The national gambling helpline SOS JEUX received 3,494 calls in 2019, 20% fewer than in 2018. Some 350 controls were also carried out in casinos, cafes, automatic games (like fruit machines) rooms, betting agencies, newsagents and illegal gambling areas.

These led to 52 sanctions, notably the suspension or removal of a shop’s licence or a fine – with €82,916’s worth recovered last year, says the organisation which reports to Belgium's federal public service for justice.

But this is the proverbial drop in the ocean compared to the profit made in 2018 by Belgium’s nine casinos. The total ‘gross gaming revenue’ (GGR) was €281 million, 10.44% more than for 2017.

The country’s 170-plus online and off-line games rooms gained €266 million of GGR. Finally, online betting made €180 million, a sharp 45.7% hike compared to 2017, while offline bets generated €190 million, a 13.86% rise. These increases were attributed to more gambling due to football’s World Cup 2018.    

Next year’s report (2020) will likely show reduced GGR, as several measures have come into force in Belgium to stop gambling excesses and protect the community. Under the new rules, bars and cafés can only own two bingo- and two “fruit”-type machines; and any gambling establishment, notably betting agencies, must be situated far away from schools or other youth centres.

Any would-be gambler now needs to prove he/she is over 18 with an identity card check. And, perhaps most important of all in the fight to stop gambling addiction, any online gamer can ‘only’ bet up to €500 a week, the amount cumulative across all sites.