Belgium Bookmakers

Belgian play has a long history that testify to the earliest types of gambling dates back to the mid of the 1300′s. Currently, the country hosts many Belgium bookmakers, and the peculiarities of offshore sports betting legislation are thoroughly developed. This article explores the current and historical legislation and regulation of gambling in Belgium, the authority responsible for regulation, types of licenses, and the major production and achievement in the sports betting.

Belgium Bookmakers

Table of Contents

1999: Belgium establishes a Gambling Commission.

2011: Online gambling is legalized.

2023: By introducing strict advertising rules.

2025: Extend the advertising ban to sports stadiums.

2028: Bookmakers are prohibited from sponsoring teams and clubs.

Evolution of Gambling in Belgium

Belgian history evidence shows that gambling and betting started as early as the 1300s, included card games and lottery. The formal creation of gambling in the nation commenced with the beginning of the national lottery system in the 15th century.

Key Historical Milestones

  • 1930s: A very interesting and highly tempting are card games and lotteries.
  • 1940s: Knokke has its grand casino but during the Second World War, the structure is burnt down.
  • 1960s: This casino starts the year-round operation previously available only during the summer season.
  • 1980s: Additional changes add to the facilities’ reputation of the Grand Casino.
  • 1999: The process of legalization of gambling together with the creation of the Belgian Gaming Commission.
  • 2011: Consideration of the legislation on online gambling through the case of the Belgian Gaming Act.

Gambling Laws and Legislation

Gambling Law adopted on May 7 1999

This offers a legal perspective on the subject, and according to it gambling is defined as a game of chance whereby any commitment of a stake is done and results are based on chance. This legislation remained as a major landmark legislation as it provided for licensing as well as regulation of all forms of gambling in Belgium.

Belgian Gaming Commission

The Belgian Gaming Commission or the BGC was created in 1999 and has the primary responsibility of licensing and regulating betting and gambling in the territory of Belgium. The memberships of the BGC are drawn from most of the governmental departments such as justice, financial/currency, economic planning, interior, and health.

Major Legislative Changes

  • 2011: Belgian Gaming Act legalizes the internet gambling and ties it with the land based one.
  • 2023: New legislation adopted under Royal Decree regulates advertising strictly for both, the land based and the online gambling.

Licenses of Belgium Bookmakers

Belgium categorizes the licenses based on the kind of gambling and the following are the common ones offered to operators: Each State has some condition attached to the license and charges also differ from one license to another license.

License Categories

  • License A: To define Class I gaming establishments, or casinos. Issued for fifteen years with nine actually in force in October 2023.
  • License B: For class II gaming establishments commonly referred to as gaming arcades. Awarded for 9 years, with 175 working licenses.
  • License B+: In particular, the manuscript focused on online gaming arcades. Similar to that of License B with 49, Active licenses only.
  • License C: For class III gaming establishments (bars), the minimum amount that must be remitted from the slot operations is analyzed as follows: Issued for five years, with 4,746 permits actively in use unless the government revoked them.
  • License D: For business activity for class I, II or IV gaming establishments. Unlimited in number.
  • License F1: In the case of class IV gaming establishments (organizers of bets). Issued for a term of nine years with 30 active licenseable instruments.
  • License F1+: Finally, for providing online bets, Wimbledon opens for its fans in the month of June. 24 Active licenses same as License F1.
  • License F1P: In particular, various types of bets on horse races were distinguished: direct and combined, express and system ones. Same as License F1.
  • License F2: For accepting bets for Account Holder being a holder of the F1 license. Issued for a three years period and currently; the number of active betting shops is 467.

Regulatory of Belgium Bookmakers

The most important regulatory authority of Belgium is the Belgian Gaming Commission which governs all kinds of gambling. It also maintains the compliance of the law and fine organizations that do not have the right license.

Prohibited and Allowed Bets

Belgium has specific restrictions concerning the allowed types of bets. They can include no more than two gambling machines and the average hourly losses cannot exceed EUR 12 in betting shops. 50. Also, there are daily/weekly withdrawal restrictions depending on the gambling site, all bonuses related to gambling, and the use of credit card are prohibited.

Gambling Taxes and Fees

Taxes and fees are charged on both the conventional and over the Internet gambling exercises. These include:

  • License Fees: Depends on the type of license There are two type of license for gambling license A for casino and license B for the gaming arcade.
  • Taxes on Winnings: The law requires that operators should make payment in terms of taxes on the income derived from operations in gambling.
  • Advertising Restrictions: They are the limit that started in February 2023, the limit that restricts gambling and its promo to some extent so that the vulnerable people will not be left alone with their addictions.

Belgium Sports Betting

Belgian gambling sector is also quite developed, and one of the forms of gambling is sports betting. The sector has experienced significant evolution in the recent past mainly due to the legislature that made it legal to conduct betting online in the year 2011. To offer services legally sports betting operators need to have F1 or the F1+ license.

Sporting Event Glory Milestones

  • 1920 Olympic Games: that was host by Belgium.
  • 1972 UEFA European Championship: Part of the event is it co-hosted by Belgium.
  • 1980 UEFA European Championship: National team gets the second position.
  • 1986 FIFA World Cup: National team ensures to finish at the fourth position.
  • 2000 UEFA European Championship: Namely, the conference was co-hosted with the country of the Netherlands.

Conclusion

Belgium offered rich gambling history, strengthened by the recent legislation, a wide variety of gambling products and the active development of sports betting activities. Due to these legal transformations and high requirements for the gambling activities, the country wants to provide fair condition for every gambler.

To different players, who is likely planning to set foot on Small Caps or provide an online operation in Belgium and comprehend Belgium’s bookmaker laws and regulatory bodies, license kinds, and key epochs is vital. The maturing of this market will, however, require compliance to the regulations that suppose stakeholder awareness and benefit.

FAQ of Belgium Bookmakers

Related content

Europe Bookmakers

Denmark Bookmakers

Denmark Bookmakers

Denmark is bordered by Germany to the south and Norway and Sweden to the north. Denmark has certainly come up with a very well organized and regulated approach to gambling. This article will expand on the different aspects of the ... Read More about Denmark Bookmakers
Croatia Bookmakers

Croatia Bookmakers

The history of gambling in Croatia is also rather rich, and the opportunities for gambling are constantly developing. This guide explores the complex framework of Croatia’s gambling legislation, the development of its rules and regulations, the involvement of control organizations ... Read More about Croatia Bookmakers
Germany Bookmakers

Germany Bookmakers

Germany is a parliamentary republic country found in the central region of Europe and is famous for its culture and being one of the leading countries in innovation. One of the features of approach to regulating Germany Bookmakers and sports ... Read More about Germany Bookmakers
San Marino Bookmakers

San Marino Bookmakers

San Marino is a small but the interesting country situated in the northern part of the Apennine Peninsula and it has always had a close relation to gambling. The purpose of this article is to highlight the current legislation and ... Read More about San Marino Bookmakers
Austria Bookmakers

Austria Bookmakers

Incorporated in southern Central European, Austria is endowed with a historical background and a properly formatted gambling sector. However, one cannot help mentioning the developed gambling industry of the country if interested in the sphere of sports bet and the ... Read More about Austria Bookmakers
Estonia Bookmakers

Estonia Bookmakers

To the east of Estonia is Russia, in the south it is Latvia, in the north is the Gulf of Finland and to the southwest is Finland. Although, there are few things that might not be widely known about this ... Read More about Estonia Bookmakers
Italy Bookmakers

Italy Bookmakers

Italy is a country situated in southern Europe and is headed by Rome as its capital; it is neighbored by France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia to the north and by the Adriatic Sea, Ionian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea to ... Read More about Italy Bookmakers
Norway Bookmakers

Norway Bookmakers

The gambling activity can be considered as limited in Norway, with a rather strict stance from the government to regulate the sector properly. This article provides an insight into the different aspects of the gambling laws and legislations that exist ... Read More about Norway Bookmakers
Liechtenstein Bookmakers

Liechtenstein Bookmakers

Gambling and sports betting in Liechtenstein, a country in the heart of Europe is quite different when compared to other countries. In the context of the Liechtenstein Bookmakers and the growing popularity of Liechtenstein sports betting it is crucial to ... Read More about Liechtenstein Bookmakers
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bookmakers

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bookmakers

Currently Bosnia and Herzegovina is a Southeast European state that is considered to have a highly developed political system combined with long history. Till the year 1992 when Yugoslavia was dissolved the concept of gambling especially sports betting in the ... Read More about Bosnia and Herzegovina Bookmakers
Scroll to Top