NEWS
23 November 2022
KSA warns three operators after World Cup breaches
By Matthew Nicholson

Illegal wagers offered by one of the companies related to the number of yellow cards given by a referee during a match, which is banned in the Netherlands because it is seen to be ‘sensitive to match-fixing.’

Another company was guilty of using a role model (or ambassador) in its advertising, which is banned in the country if the role model is judged to have a large appeal to young audiences. The company was told to stop the violation immediately; otherwise, it would face ‘periodic penalty payments.’

The last offender was offering a game of chance that it was not licensed for, with a prize of €2.5m ($2.58m). However, the company has addressed the violation, and the KSA is unlikely to take any further action.

The news comes shortly after the KSA sent a letter out to operators in the Netherlands, reminding them of the strict gambling laws in the country and to advertise responsibly before the tournament started.

The letter echoed the words of the Dutch Minister of Gambling Policy, Franc Weerwind, during a debate in the House of Representatives. Here, he asked games of chance providers to take care when advertising during the sporting event.

René Jansen, Chairman of the KSA, said in a statement following the letter: “The image of the gambling sector and individual gambling companies is not very good. The bombardment of advertising after the opening of the legal market did not help."