Ilegal gambling
The Czech Republic is no longer the "casino of Europe."
As a result of strict regulation of gambling at both national and local levels, there has been a rapid decline in legal casinos and the number of gaming machines in the Czech Republic. Currently, with fewer than 3.4 gaming machines per 1,000 inhabitants, the Czech Republic is at the same level as Germany or the United Kingdom.
However, the restriction of legal gambling options has unfortunately created fertile ground for illegal gambling. Prohibition is not a self-sufficient solution. Banning gambling does not eliminate gambling altogether; instead, it leads to illegal gambling activities.
What is illegal gambling?
Illegal gambling does not have the necessary permits from the Ministry of Finance and individual municipalities.
The size of the illegal gambling market
Illegal gambling costs the state annually
What are the risks of illegal gambling?
- There is no control, let alone protection of players.
- It allows gambling for children, minors, pathological gamblers, and individuals registered in the Register of Excluded Persons.
- It does not contribute taxes and fees to local and state budgets.
- It increases the state's expenses in combating and addressing the consequences associated with pathological gambling.
- It undermines the legal market.
Illegal online gambling
- Not every gambling game on the internet is legal.
- According to last year's study, even 50 percent of the displayed web pages with gambling games in the Google search engine were illegal or linked to illegal websites.
- Since 2017, the Ministry of Finance has been listing exposed illegal sites on the so-called Blacklist, and internet service providers subsequently block access to them.
How many illegal websites have been blocked?
How does the CZ perform in comparison with other EU countries in blocking illegal websites?
Illegal gambling venues
Since 2017, the Customs Administration has uncovered more than 1,155 illegal gambling establishments. On the other hand, the number of legally permitted establishments has been consistently declining. In 2022, there were 834 legally allowed gambling halls and casinos.
The Black Book of Illegal Gambling
The first comprehensive Czech study mapping the entire illegal gambling market in the Czech Republic. It presents the practices of illegal operators as well as the size of the illegal market and how much the state loses annually due to illegal operators.
