ANJ marks ‘little progress’ on excessive gambling

ANJ, the French gambling authority, has completed its annual review of action plans set out by casinos to identify and support excessive gamblers.

A total of 203 casinos, seven gaming clubs and 235 racetracks submitted their action plans in accordance with regulations set out in 2019.

The ANJ noted that the plans demonstrated “little significant progress in terms of identifying and supporting excessive gamblers and a very heterogeneous level of compliance among casinos.”

Six action plans were rejected.

The ANJ is expected to soon publish a practical guide, drawn from best practice within France and internationally, to help casinos draw up and enact their action plans.

The sector in France has now returned to pre-pandemic levels, with a recorded €2.5bn in turnover in 2022.

In 2020, The Games Observatory estimated there were 1.4 million people at risk from excessive gambling, including nearly 400,000 at a pathological level. Excessive gambling is cited as one of the most significant risks affecting the French gambling market.