Stake says it doesn't operate in France
Parent Easygo responds to G&Co, Barrière CEO, UK ad rules & Co
Hello, on Gaming&Co today:
Easygo says it has closed Kick’s gaming tabs and doesn’t operate in France
Barrière Groupe CEO hits out at political instability
ASA closes UK gambling ad loophole
Results & reg round-up: Holland Casino, OPAP, Netherlands, Sweden, Finland
News shorts: Flutter, Sportradar, FDJ
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Stake denies taking bets from France
Parent group says French iGaming tab closed and expresses “deep sadness” at streamer’s death
French block: Easygo, the parent company of the crypto-gambling giant Stake and streaming site Kick, has insisted to G&Co that the Slots & Casino category on Kick is “available only to users aged 18+ and is disabled by default in certain jurisdictions, including France”.
The company was responding to last week’s article that followed up on the news of the death of French streamer Jean Pormanove (real name Raphaël Graven) and the role Kick plays in driving iGaming players to Stake and other real money gaming websites.
Kick was established by Easygo in 2022 following Stake’s exit from Amazon’s streaming platform Twitch and acts as a major referral platform for Stake.
A spokesperson for Stake also pushed back against the claim that the iGaming site accepts “players from many European regulated markets” and that “a simple VPN will give players access to the site from ‘unauthorised’ countries”. However, she did not clarify when the ‘Slots & Casino’ category had been disabled in France.
Kick, push: “We verify every user's identity. Stake employs 24/7 compliance teams utilising real-time monitoring, blockchain analytics, and ongoing verification. Our systems continuously monitor for suspicious activity, requiring enhanced verification when risk indicators are triggered.”
The spokesperson added: “Users who attempt to bypass geoblocking via VPN in violation of our Terms of Service will be detected by our systems. If false information is used to fraudulently access the site, the account is flagged and suspended.”
Remove and cooperate
Meanwhile, a Kick spokesperson said the company was “deeply saddened by the loss” of Raphaël Graven and that following the incident, it “immediately removed the content showing his passing, suspended all related accounts pending investigation and cooperated fully with all authorities, including law enforcement, the regulatory body ARCOM and Minister in charge of AI and Digital Affairs, Clara Chappaz”.
“We have been working with relevant authorities, including French police and ARCOM, to assist their investigations into this matter,” they added.
No service: With regard to the US and the civil enforcement action filed by the City of Los Angeles against Evolution and Hacksaw Gaming, whose products were available on Stake.us, Easygo pointed out that Stake had “not been served at this time” and it rejects “allegations that have been made in the media in relation to this potential claim and will vigorously defend this and all such claims”.
However, it did not provide a response as to whether it continues to take bets from players based in California.
Regulated push: Stake recently acquired the regulated brand Vinder Casino in Denmark and made regulated moves in Colombia, Peru and Brazil and said it has “a significant licensed footprint around the world and are always evaluating new opportunities for growth. With each new market entry, our momentum builds as we continue expanding our presence in global licensed markets”.
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Barrière CEO: French politicians are “out of touch”
Grégory Rabuel says negative atmosphere impacts French businesses
Political instability ⇲ investment: Grégory Rabuel, CEO of France’s largest casino operator Groupe Barrière, was highly critical of the country's politicians earlier this week. Speaking to Europe 1 on Monday, he said the country’s political instability was impacting French companies negatively.
Prime Minister François Bayrou’s government is facing a confidence vote on Monday and “all these changes are not likely to encourage investment in the right direction”, he said.
Chronic pain: Recall, Michel Barnier’s government was forced out through a confidence motion in December and Rabuel denounced the "chronic instability" the political changes were creating. The removal of Barnier’s cabinet also put an end to plans to assess the social, economic and player protection impacts of potential online casino regulation.
"The public authorities, the politicians, are out of touch with the reality of many things, particularly businesses. They want to hit companies, they want to tax the richest. Soon, there will be no more rich people in our country, and that will be that,” Rabuel commented.
He added that “all these changes are not likely to encourage investment in the right direction", that the current climate was causing deep "anxiety” and the politicians needed to put French people at the heart of things and give them the tools to succeed.
Demonstrations and strikes are scheduled for this month and with the French government planning on cancelling two bank holidays, Rabuel said current conditions might put off consumers from booking their half-term or Christmas holidays. He said Barrière would assess their impact at the end of September.
ASA closes loophole on gambling advertising
Offshore operators must now comply with UK regulations on social media marketing
Closing the loophole: The UK’s Advertising Standards Authority has extended the CAP Code to cover unpaid social media marketing by UK-licensed gambling operators, regardless of where they are based. The change, effective from September 1, aims to close a longstanding loophole that effectively allowed offshore advertisers in jurisdictions such as Malta and Gibraltar to bypass UK rules.
Now, all organic content from gambling operators on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, X, and YouTube must fully comply with rules such as a ban on the use of athletes or celebrities to promote gambling. A three-month industry consultation will conclude with a formal review in December.
Trending: The move reflects a wider trend across Europe where regulators are ramping up restrictions on gambling advertising and sponsorship.
The Netherlands implemented a full ban on sports sponsorships, including shirt deals, in July while in neighbouring Belgium, front-of-shirt sponsorships have been banned since January, with tightly constrained visibility even for back-of-shirt or in-stadium branding.
Curb your enthusiasm: In Spain, advertising limits and a bonusing ban are estimated to have cut new player accounts by over 50% since 2020, and further measures are under consideration, while in France, the National Gambling Authority has called for a “whistle-to-whistle” ad ban and has urged operators to curb promotional spending to better protect minors and at-risk gamblers.
While the ASA ruling doesn’t target sponsorships directly, it adds to mounting regulatory pressure on football clubs reliant on gambling revenues. More than half of Premier League clubs currently feature front-of-shirt gambling sponsors, for what is the final season before voluntary removal begins in 2026/27.
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Results round-up: Holland Casino, OPAP
Remains vulnerable: Holland Casino delivered a pre-tax profit of €14.2m in H1 2025, a notable rebound from the €3.5m loss in 2024, thanks largely to cost reductions and property sales. While revenue dropped 2.4% to €391m, operating expenses were slashed by approximately €30m and proceeds from the sale of two casino properties (Zandvoort and Groningen) added around €11.4m to the bottom line.
Ruud boy: However, CFO Ruud Bergervoet warned that the state-controlled casino operator remains vulnerable due to rising taxation: the Netherlands gaming tax rate increased from 30.5% to 34.2% in early 2025, and is set to climb further in 2026.
Bergervotet said if the 2026 tax rate had been applied in H1 2025, profit would have shrunk to just €1m, or even swung to a loss without the property sales.
Digital odyssey: Greek operator OPAP’s digital growth drove a 6.5% YoY rise in GGR to €1.15bn in H1 2025 with iGaming leading the growth for the Allwyn-owned firm, climbing 22% to €171.3m on an expanded game portfolio and enhanced loyalty offerings.
Lottery rose 3.9% to €386.7 m, while sports betting increased 5.2% to €368.m. H1 EBITDA was up 6.6% at €398.4 m, with net profit up 6.3% at €233.4 m. In Q2, GGR grew 4.7% to €557.9 m, with net profit of €110.0m, up 3.6%.
CEO Jan Karas said: “We delivered a solid performance across all channels, with digital accelerating strongly. Continued investments in online and retail will support sustainable growth for the rest of 2025.”
Regulatory news: Netherlands, Sweden, Finland
Exit plan
The Dutch gambling regulator KSA has announced it will require all remote-gambling licence applicants or renewers - including those already licensed - to include an “exit plan” outlining how they'd wind down operations should their licence not be extended.
The KSA said applicants must also submit a policy-change notification document and a risk analysis per Dutch anti-money-laundering and terrorist-financing laws. Failure to meet these requirements may result in application rejection, even for prior licence holders.
The licensed market in the Netherlands officially opened on October 1 2021 and operators that secured the first licences will soon have to begin pulling together their applications for renewal. Early licences, issued ahead of the market opening, run for five years and are due to expire in October 2026.
Swedish channel woes
Sweden’s online gambling trade body BOS has urged the government to launch a new, wide-ranging inquiry into the country’s betting and gaming market. In a letter to the Ministry of Finance, BOS said efforts to channel players towards licensed operators have stalled at 85%, short of the state’s 90% target.
Online casino remains the weakest area, with just 72-82% of play channelled. While a narrower review by government investigator Marcus Isgren is due later this month, BOS argues broader reforms are needed, including scrapping Sweden’s ban on loyalty bonuses.
Finn-tech
Finland’s National Police Board has issued warning notices to two social media influencers, threatening them with conditional €30,000 fines for violating the nation’s Lotteries Act. The unnamed pair were found to be promoting gambling content, specifically affiliate links, to Finnish audiences via streaming platforms such as Twitch and Kick, even though the content originated from outside Finland.
The influencers have been ordered to remove all previously posted gambling content and cease any future promotions. Under the Lotteries Act, marketing gambling services to Finland from abroad is not permitted; only the state monopoly, Veikkaus, may do so.
News shorts
Paddy Power will be the official sportsbook partner of the NFL in the UK and Ireland for the 2025/26 season. The one-year deal grants the Flutter-owned operator access to NFL digital channels, promotional rights, and video footage, along with retail and online activation across both markets. It also positions the brand as the official free-to-play partner, launching its new game “Paddy Power NFL Showdown”.
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched an official merger inquiry into Sportradar’s proposed acquisition of IMG Arena, with a final decision expected by October 24. The regulator is examining whether the deal would lead to a “substantial lessening of competition” in the UK market for sports data and streaming. After a 40-day ‘Phase 1’ review, the CMA will determine if the merger requires a deeper ‘Phase 2’ investigation.
FDJ United has promoted Sanna van Doorn to General Manager for Netherlands, replacing Lennart Kessels, who led the division for more than three years. Van Doorn was previously FDJ Head of Corporate Affairs for Benelux.
Calendar
Results: 11 Sept: Playtech, 18 Sept: Super Group Investor Day
Events: 15-18 Sept: SBC Summit Lisbon
Contact
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