ANJ Publishes First Annual Report, Launches Five-Point Action Plan

The Autorité nationale des jeux (ANJ) has released its inaugural activity report covering June 2020 to June 2021, detailing the establishment of France's new gambling regulatory framework and announcing a comprehensive action plan to address issues observed during Euro 2020.

First Year MilestonesSince its establishment on June 23, 2020, the ANJ board has convened 17 times and adopted 240 decisions. Key achievements include:

Renewal of licenses for 10 operators expiring in 2020Implementation of responsible gambling action plans and promotional strategiesDevelopment of reference frameworks for addiction and AML complianceLaunch of a streamlined voluntary self-exclusion servicePublication of the 2021-2023 strategic plan with player protection at its coreFive-Point Action Plan for 2021Following concerns during Euro 2020, the ANJ announced five initiatives to be completed by year-end:

Advertising: Operators must submit mid-term reviews of their promotional strategies approved in January 2021, with potential sanctions for non-compliance. A stakeholder consultation will launch in autumn, and collaboration with advertising standards body ARPP will produce operational guidelines.

Bonuses: The regulator will analyze French and European bonus practices to define "reasonable" commercial incentives and evaluate whether stricter limits are needed.

Problem Gambling Detection: A September seminar will establish a unified definition of excessive gambling, addressing inconsistencies between operators. Investigations are ongoing into complaints that problem gamblers received promotional incentives.

Stake Limitations: Following a March Council of State ruling recognizing bettors as consumers, ANJ is reviewing operator terms against consumer protection law. Updated guidelines on stake limits will be proposed in September.

Tipsters: ANJ has referred misleading commercial practices by tipster websites to administrative and judicial authorities.