Olympic continues to fight Riga’s gambling ban

The casino operator is vowing to appeal a court ruling that banned casinos in Riga, Latvia, which forced one of its venues to shut down.

Latvia.- The Riga City Council decided to close all gaming halls (apart from those located in five- or four-star hotels) in the Latvian capital city back in May 2017. Olympic Entertainment Group’s (OEG) was one of the operators hit by the decision as it operates 7 of the 42 venues affected. However, OEG has been fighting the decision despite receiving several legal setbacks along the way.

On Monday, the company announced the decision by the District Administrative Court in Riga, which ruled in favour of the City Council in regard to a specific casino on Raina Boulevard 15 which will be required to close its doors by October 2022. However, CEO Madis Jääger asserted that the operator “will appeal the decision to higher level court.”

OEG had filed legal action against Riga in October after the city decided to cancel the permits to operate two casinos. However, its efforts haven’t paid off and the ban still holds.

The company, despite being unsuccessful so far, will continue to fight Riga’s decision as Latvia is its leading market. OEG has 53 gaming venues in the country. Furthermore, it recorded revenue of €69 million during 2017, which amounted to a third of its overall revenue.