Spanish gambling regulation: Garzón warns of further tightening

Spain’s minister for consumer affairs has warned operators to brace themselves for a further overhaul of Spanish gambling regulations.

Spain.- Alberto Garzón, Spain’s minister for consumer affairs, has warned gambling operators to expect more changes to regulations in order to raise consumer protection standards.

Garzon, who was instrumental in developing Spain’s tough restrictions on gambling advertising passed in November, said he had the ministerial duty to centralise the governance of gambling law across Spain’s 17 autonomous communities.

Reviewing the progress made by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, he told Spanish newspaper Publico.es that the ministry would publish its Phase 2 framework directives outlining further changes to Spain’s gambling regulations after parliamentary recess.

His comments follow the publication of joint proposals from the ministry and the Spanish gambling regulator, the DGOJ, outlining plans for “an optimal framework for safer gambling environments”.

It includes a proposal that would require players to set individual loss limits for each individual wagering session. Phase 2 of Garzon’s reforms will also focus on updating the RGIAJ player self-exclusion system, with a central player database to be managed by the DGOJ. 

Garzón also heralded the coming into force of the advertising restrictions passed last year. He said: “From September 1, all this type of invasive advertising will disappear.

“There will be no advertising in the stadiums, there will be no advertising on the shirts, there will be no celebrities promoting betting houses and games of chance, and there will be no advertisements on the radio, on television or in any type of advertising medium.”