Italy’s land-based gambling sector remains in limbo as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has rejected the final terms of its long-awaited retail gambling reorganisation decree. A two-year negotiation between the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) and the Conference of Regions and Autonomous Provinces broke down, with Meloni’s office sending the Decreto di Riordino del Gioco Fisico back for further consideration.
Alfredo Mantovano, Meloni’s Undersecretary, confirmed that minimum distance protections imposed by regional authorities will remain unchanged. The government is firm that rules barring gambling venues near schools and sensitive sites must stay in place.
The impasse centres on efforts to harmonise regional legislation through common requirements for minimum distances, opening hours, venue certification and concessions. Regional governments have resisted any weakening of their powers, treating gambling as a key public health matter. This entanglement mirrors broader Italian policymaking tensions between national reforms and regional constitutional authority.
The collapse raises uncertainty for the new retail concessions programme. Without resolution on distance restrictions, new tenders for betting shops, slots and bingo halls will be challenging to execute, as prior processes have been contested due to difficulties identifying compliant sites. New auctions were expected to generate between €1.8bn and €2bn in upfront revenue, alongside a uniform national framework including defined sensitive locations, harmonised hours, operator registers, advertising rules and technical standards for new machines.
Concessions will continue until 31 December 2026, with analysts suggesting likely further extensions of a year or two. AGIC, whose members include Flutter Entertainment, Lottomatica, Entain, bet365 and Brightstar, has warned that nearly a decade of extensions has discouraged investment and delayed modernisation.
