The State Administrative Office of Saxony-Anhalt granted the business a total of five licences, which allows Entain to offer gaming under its Ladbrokes, Bwin and Sportingbet subsidiaries. Bwin and Ladbrokes can also offer poker in the country – making Entain the first business granted a licence to offer online poker.
Each of the licences is valid for five years, with Entain saying, ‘each brand and will enable the Group to enhance and develop its position as a market leader in sports betting and gaming in Germany’.
Robert Hoskin, Entain’s Chief Governance Officer, commented on the licence awards: “We’re delighted to now have our licences for gaming and poker services in the regulated German market, enabling us to offer and market them to our customers.
“It is an important and welcome step towards achieving the goal of a fully regulated online betting and gaming market in Germany. Only through such regulation and its enforcement will we avoid the reality of customers going to the black market where there are none of the safeguards that reputable operators such as Entain guarantee.”
Days before the start of the world’s biggest sporting tournament, Entain’s report revealed that Brazil’s fans are the most patriotic, with 50% of bettors in the country backing the national team to win the trophy.