Olympic loses Riga lawsuit

The District Administrative Court in Riga ruled against the operator’s challenge to keep the OEG casino open in the Latvian capital.

Latvia.- Olympic Entertainment Group (OEG) has announced that the District Administrative Court in Riga has ruled in favour of the Riga City Council regarding the closure of its casino in the city. Therefore, despite the Estonian-listed operator’s intention to keep it open (which will continue through further appeals), the venue will have to close by October 2022.

42 gambling halls were struck by Riga City Council’s decision to close them (apart from those located in five- or four-star hotels) back in May 2017. Their respective operators have turned to court to appeal the decision and keep their operations running but it seems that there is no good news ahead for gambling companies.

CEO Madis Jääger had previously asserted that – should the Court rule as it just has – the operator (which operates seven out of the 42 halls affected) “will appeal the decision to higher level court.” Still, the company will see its Olympic Voodoo Casino’s revenues benefit from the City Council’s decision as it doesn’t fall under the ban and will attract gamblers from all the other venues.