In response to a petition by a voluntary organisation and several lottery and gambling companies, the Conseil d’État found today that the monopoly granted to La Française des Jeux in 2019, for the operation of some games complies with European Union law. The granting of exclusive rights to a single company helps protect health and public order by combating the risk of excessive gambling and fraud, through a controlled circuit and limited growth in the number of games proposed and their points of sale.
In 2019, a law authorised the transfer of the majority of the capital of La Française des Jeux to the private sector1. The government subsequently enacted several instruments, including an order2 specifying the conditions of the transfer: the granting of exclusive lottery and gambling rights on certain segments, state control and regulation of the industry. A voluntary organisation and several lottery and gambling companies asked the Conseil d’État to annul those instruments.
Today, the Conseil d’État found that by granting exclusive rights to a private company subject to close control by the authorities, the Government was pursuing a goal in the common interest; that of protecting health and public order due to the known risks of excessive gambling, fraud and the use of lottery games for criminal ends. That goal justifies restricting the free provision of services and the freedom of establishment, as had already been found by the Court of Justice of the European Union.
The Conseil d’État also ruled that the 25-year term for the exclusive rights granted to La Française des Jeux is not excessive. Such a term was selected lawfully by the Government, in the knowledge that the State could, during that period,ensure that the measures implemented remained proportionate to achieving the fixed objective of protecting gambling consumers and, if not, put an end to it. The Council found in that respect that the obligations and restrictions imposed on La Française des Jeux and the reinforced control mechanisms applied by the national lottery and gambling authority did guide its promotional policy and ensure that the available games remained limited in quantity and of appropriate quality.
For those reasons, the Conseil d’État found that the monopoly granted to La Française des Jeux on some game segments, even while it restricts the economic activity of other players in the industry, complies with European Union law. The Conseil d’État thus dismissed the petition.
Lastly, in respect of the remuneration owed to the State by La Française des Jeux in exchange for the exclusive rights granted (€380 million), which some petitioners believe is unlawful public aid due to its inadequacy, the Conseil d’État will hand down its ruling after the decision that will soon be made by the European Commission on the subject.
Read the decisions Nos. 436434 and following, Nos. 436439 and following (in French)
1 Law No. 2019-486 of 22 May 2019 relating to the growth and transformation of enterprises
2 Order No. 2019-1015 of 2 October 2019 reforming the regulation of gambling and games of chance