Major refund case could shape European gaming’s future

A major case heard by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) could reshape the fate of pending refunds across Europe.

The case, C-440/23, involving a German gambler and a Maltese gambling operator has high stakes as billions of Euros in outstanding cases reportedly hang on the much-maligned legal submission.

According to the European Lotteries, the dispute arose when German gambling was essentially prohibited, but German nationals could still post bets via a loophole with the Maltese operator.

The case resides in a “regulatory gap”, said the European Commission, before the 2021 Interstate Treaty on Gambling came into force in Germany.

The CJEU has stated the case revolves around “an application for reimbursement of stakes lost by an individual on the secondary lotteries offered in Germany for which the private (Maltese) operators did not have a license, and in particular, the compatibility of the German regime prohibiting unlicensed online bet on lotteries with Article 56 TFEU (German gambling law).”

In addition to the confusing limbo that the case timeline resides in there are also decisions to be made on what the game of chance is conventionally named and where the case sits in terms of legal jurisdiction.

Regulators at the CJEU must decide on the nature of the game and determine if it is in fact a lottery run by a European member state or a bet in those exact terms.

The CJEU must also asses if the German, Maltese or European courts would be the best environment to rule the case on.

The European Lotteries stated that the legal experts “have to examine the distinction between a lottery organized by the State and a bet with a private organizer regulated in another Member State on the result of that same State lottery (so-called ‘secondary’ lottery) and on the justification of the German regulations on online casinos and lotteries under Union law.”

The case could give a boost to gamblers who may have been impacted by the legal grey area in the gulf between the 2021 Interstate Treaty on Gambling. This would also open the proverbial floodgates for those who think their case stands a chance at an appellate level.

On the other hand if this case rules in favor of the decision to uphold the lack of a financial payout and sides with the Maltese operator then it would embolden operators across the European Union who may be disputing similar cases.

The Advocate General will publish their opinion on July 10th, 2025, and until then the European betting scene holds its breath.

Image: European Lotteries.

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