ARJEL introduces sports betting restrictions
Punters no longer able to bet on football or basketball matches that have no bearing on relegation or European qualification.
French regulator L’Autorité de régulation des jeux en ligne (ARJEL) has updated its sports betting legislation to limit the number of bets bookmakers can offer on football and basketball.
The changes, which affect the top two football divisions and a number of basketball leagues, prevent customers from betting on matches which have no bearing on promotion, relegation or deciding which teams qualify for European competition. Games between teams whose league position will not change regardless of whether they win or lose a game are also affected, with operators banned from offering odds on such games, even if the team is in the relegation or European qualification slots.
ARJEL described this as a move to combat gambling addiction by preventing players from placing bets for the sake of betting, and claim that the ban will help prevent match fixing with betting rings thought to target inconsequential matches and several high-profile examples emerging in the Italian leagues over the past few years.
France’s biggest match-fixing scandal, however, saw then-Olympique Marseille president Bernard Tapie, father of International Stadium Poker Tour Laurent Tapie, bribe FC Valenciennes to throw a match, allowing Marseille to win the French title and focus on training for a Champions League final against AC Milan, which the team also won.
While just the top two football leagues “ Ligue 1 and 2 “ are affected, a total of five basketball leagues have come under scrutiny, with betting on inconsequential matches banned in the Championnat Ligue Féminine de Basketball; Championnat Ligue Féminine 2; Championnat National Masculin 1; Championnat de France Pro B and Championnat de France Pro A.
The move has been criticised by the Fédération française des entreprises de jeux en ligne (FFEJEL), an operator association made up of La Française des Jeux, Groupe Lucien Barrière, Pari-Mutuel Urbain, Groupe JOA and Groupe Tranchant.
The federation’s president Roland de Villepin is quoted by iGaming France as saying that the move runs the risk of destabilising a “still-emerging market.”
ARJEL will now turn its attention to volleyball and handball, to decide whether to limit the number of bets operators can offer on league matches.