Lottery betting operator Lottoland is seeking to disrupt the German market by applying to become the country’s first privately run lottery operator.
This week, Lottoland announced that it had filed applications in “several” German states to operate a ‘major lottery’ product – so dubbed because it offers high jackpots – that would resemble popular local lottery product Lotto6aus49 or the Euro jackpot multi-state lottery.
Lottoland spokesperson Dr. Rolf Stypmann said the company’s experience in Italy, the UK and Austria had demonstrated that “organizationally, private companies are able to handle lotteries at the level of state lotteries.” Stypmann said his company was “excited to see the outcome of this application and hope at the very least to be informed about the requirements for such a license.”
The Gibraltar-licensed Lottoland already offers bet-on-lottery services in Germany and the country is one of Lottoland’s core markets. Lottoland has paid over €44m in prizes to German customers since Christmas 2015, including a record €22m prize to a winner from Berlin.
Lottoland’s presence hasn’t gone unnoticed by state lottery monopolies, which have sought to discredit online lottery brokers like Lottoland by claiming punters run the risk of not receiving their winnings. The state monopolies have also pointed out that companies like Lottoland don’t contribute the same share of revenue to social causes.
German State Lottery Association members generate revenue of €7.3b per year, of which around 40% goes directly to state governments. Lottoland’s Stypmann says these numbers demonstrate why the states are determined to maintain their monopolies and “refuse any kind of progress.”
Lottoland has run into similar resistance in other markets, including the UK, which this month announced an open consultation into “prohibiting third-party betting on non-UK Euro Millions draws.” Lottoland has engaged in a very public war of words with UK National Lottery operator Camelot over the right to offer customers alternative services.
Lottoland made its official launch in Ireland this week after receiving a local remote betting license last year. The company has tapped former Betfair Ireland manager Graham Ross to front its Irish division, which is already coming under fire from retailer’s umbrella group RGdata for having “no obligations to contribute toward good causes.”
