Gambling in the Netherlands: LiveScore Group exits online market

The operator is closing its Dutch online gambling operation due to market changes.

The Netherlands.- LiveScore Group has confirmed that it has decided to close its online gaming offering in the Netherlands. It cited increasingly challenging conditions, which include an upcoming hike in gambling tax from January.

LiveScore Bet, which also operates in the UK, Ireland and Nigeria, told the Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) that it will cease offering online gambling in the Netherlands on November 29. Players will be able to make deposits up until November 25 and will be able to make bets until November 29, when any remaining balances will be refunded. The company said it was undertaking a consultation process with affected employees.

The operator was one of the first 10 to gain licences to launch online gambling in the Netherlands when the regulated market opened in October 2021. It’s not the first to since leave the market, with Flutter’s Tombola having announced its exit soon after the tax hike was confirmed. Flutter also blamed new deposit limits that came into force on October 1.

LiveScore Group chief executive Sam Sadi said: “On behalf of all LiveScore Malta directors, it is with regret that we have made the difficult decision to exit LiveScore Bet from the Netherlands. Unfortunately, the planned tax increase means that this market is no longer viable commercially.

“Since our launch in 2021 we have built a brilliant community of engaged customers, and we will greatly miss our relationship with them. We would like to thank our players, people and partners during our time in operation.”

Meanwhile, the state-controlled casino operator Holland Casino has contacted trade unions to seek support for its opposition to the Dutch government’s planned increase in gambling tax from next year. The private sector trade union De Unie said the casino operator had asked it to support its stance.