Online casinos have become a popular form of entertainment and leisure in many parts of Europe. Most of these online casino gambling sites are found in countries like France, Sweden, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland, United Kingdom, Spain, Slovakia and Turkey to name a few.
Online casino gambling industries in the UK have flourished as well as in other parts of Europe due to the gambling laws. Licenses are granted but the online casinos are regulated properly. Regulated online casinos provide secure online casino banking, provide payout percentage reports for all the games and proper customer support.
The market in Western Europe and the betting market in Germany has both showed a specific growth curve. The German market shows over 70% growth recognized by private operators. Sweden, the UK and Germany are famous for their horse racing tracks too where Racinos (casinos at horse racing tracks) are quite common.
Europe Gambling Laws and Licenses
All the countries around the world, especially in Europe, have different gambling laws. European online casino gambling sites, depending in which countries they are based in, are regulated by the governing law. The laws keep changing so it’s always best to check regularly on what the status is in your country. One standard law is that you have to be of a legal age to gamble whether it is online or in a land based casino.
Around 20 countries in Western Europe have set up casinos out of which 4 countries offer part-mutual facilities of slots games and video poker terminals for players to wager on.
The UK gambling industry is known to be one of the biggest in Europe. Great Britain alone shows a figure of 9000 licensed betting offices, and chips have been exchanged for £3.5 billion in a single year. The UK consists of nearly 122 land based casinos with online gaming, and the amount collected by these gaming industries has given rise to a better new legislation which helps regulate the industry.
According to the UK law, gambling would be unlawful unless it is permitted specifically. These permissions are granted by registration, license, exemption or permit. It is an offensive if gambling facilities are being used without permission for which it may lead to a maximum of 6 months imprisonment or fine, or both. Under the Bill there are 2 types of gaming and betting permitted which are:
* private and non commercial gaming
* and non commercial betting
A new and unified regulator, Gambling Commission, has taken over the board which is responsible for licensing and has the authority to introduce Codes of Practice for the gambling industry. It can also execute to enforce the licensing. These are:
* Ensuring that there is no link between gambling and crime or disorder;
* Ensuring that gambling is conducted fairly and openly; and
* Protecting children and vulnerable adults from harm or exploitation
* People under the age of 18 are not allowed to gamble
* It is an offense to “invite, cause or permit” a child (under 16) or a young person (16 and 17 year old) to gamble, and if a young person does gamble, he is committing an offense.
There are over 200 casinos in UK in Aberdeen, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Coventry but most are found in London and in Manchester. However interested tourists can opt for one of the many casino locations in Western Europe to enjoy gambling. If you are not a traveler, then play online like the majority of gamblers in Europe.