Could Berlusconi Champion Italy’s Gambling Industry?

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Tuesday, May 29th, 2018 | Written by Charles Washington

Last weekend, Italy’s gambling industry breathed a collective sigh of relief after the country’s president Sergio Mattarella failed to green-light Prime Minister-designate Giuseppe Conte’ plan to form a coalition government consisting of the anti-Euro Five Star Movement (MS5) and the far-right League party.

That because a few days earlier, the prospective new government had been circulating a draft document proposing a slew of draconian measures to be imposed upon the industry, including a major clampdown on slot machines, strict restrictions on repeat bet gambling games, and a complete ban on gambling advertising and sponsorship within the country.

Now that Giuseppe Conte no longer has a mandate to form a government, however, fresh elections are expected to be held again this autumn. Furthermore, former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has now been given the go-ahead to hold public office once more following a ban being lifted by an Italian tribunal that was not due to expire until next year. Meanwhile, the billionaire media tycoon and pro-EU politician has already voiced his opposition to many of the anti-gambling proposals circulated last week by the failed coalition, giving fresh hope that the country’s lucrative gambling industry may be preserved after all.

Economic Woes

Giuseppe Conte and his prospective coalition government proposed the anti-gambling measures despite the country currently nursing a €2.3 trillion debt load, and desperately in need of maintaining all the revenue sources it can. Within this context, Italy’s gambling industry has made its fair share of contribution to state coffers over the years, and in 2017 a massive €10 billion in taxes and license fees was collected by the government, €6 billion of which was derived from slot machine and video lottery terminals (VLT). An additional €140 million was also raised from online gambling activities, with all these lucrative revenue streams set to shrink by millions if the proposed anti-gambling measures were ever implemented.

Gambling Addiction Worries

Italy is Europe’s second largest gambling market after Great Britain, and like the latter also has mounting concerns over the levels of gambling addiction cases being reported. In 2017, for instance, it was found that at least 17 million people from its population of 60 million had engaged in some form of gambling, compared to just 10 million in 2014.

In response, the previous Italian government launched stricter controls of its own in order to protect vulnerable gamers, and so reduced the number of slots machines in Italy by a huge 35%. Even more recently, a far ranging self-exclusion program was launched nationwide allowing online gamblers to ban themselves from all licensed online gambling sites by simply filling in a single form.

Slot Machine Restrictions

Slot machines are increasingly been viewed as a blight on the community by ant-gambling groups, and have been blamed for heavily contributing towards addiction and social woes in the country. According to the draft bill circulated by the failed coalition, the number of slots in Italy would be subjected to yet another major purge, with their availability limited to just a few select places, with bars and distributors excluded from the industry. Furthermore, any venues offering slots would then be required to be situated a good distance away from places where young people tend to congregate, such as near high schools and youth centers.

Considering that slot machines often generate the lion’s share of revenues for a country’s gambling industry, these restrictions would have put a very large dent in the country’s lucrative market.

Advertising Ban

The coalition also proposed “an absolute ban on gambling advertising and sponsorships”, which has already received fierce criticism from Silvio Berlusconi, a media baron who controls three of Italy’s seven national TV channels. The country’s gambling advertising market is believed to be worth €200 million per annum, and its fair to say that Berlusconi is likely to champion the rights of gambling companies to advertise on television, not least in order to protect his bottom line.

Commenting upon Berlusconi’s five year ban following charges of tax fraud, Mara Carfagna, who currently leads the ex-premier’s Forza Italia party, stated: “Silvio Berlusconi can finally return to the playing field. The ’rehabilitation’ by the Milan Surveillance Court puts an end to a judicial persecution and a cavalry that didn’t chip away at the strength of great leadership, that, in a profoundly changed political scenario, is today still fundamental and central.”

Considering Berlusconi’s increasingly pro-EU stance, Italy can at least expect the businessman-politician to bring some relief to Italy’s gambling industry should he be voted into office this Fall.