Dutch national lottery signs code with football association

The Nationale Loterij has signed a code of conduct with the Royal Dutch Football Association.

The Netherlands.- The Nationale Loterij has signed a responsible gaming code of conduct with the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB).

The agreement is intended to ensure that football and sports betting have a fair, transparent and ethical relationship. 

It declares that consumers, policymakers, football fans and civil society must be able to trust that football and sports betting are conducted fairly and with integrity.

It establishes three principles: that football players and fans must be able to rely on the sporting nature of the game; that consumers must be able to bet on the game in a safe and responsible manner, and that there should be no conflict of interest in the organisation of matches and sports betting.

The agreement coincides with the launch of Nederlandse Loterij’s “Keep your peace, play consciously” responsible gambling campaign.

Run by its sports betting brand, Toto, the campaign is a collaboration with Nathan Rutjes, a Dutch amateur footballer and mental coach.

Nederlandse Loterij chief executive, Niels Onkenhout, said: “The popularity of football and the growing attention for sports betting are the perfect time to make agreements with each other about those things that keep sports and sports betting fun and thus also how we can protect that together.

“Even if the market for online games of chance opens up in the Netherlands and the supply grows, much structural attention will be needed for responsible gaming.”

KNVB commercial director, Jean Paul Decossaux, said: “By signing the code of conduct, we are also taking up our social responsibility on this theme.

“The opening up of the market for online games of chance offers new opportunities for the football world, but we also have to keep a close eye on the risks.

“We believe it is important that the integrity of football is not compromised and that the sports experience is enhanced.

“We are very confident that together in this way we can pay extra attention to the risks, so that football fans can trust what they see on the field and consumers can bet safely.”

Meanwhile in the Netherlands, the national regulator has created an igaming licensing department to respond to licence requests when the country’s new regulated market opens next year.