The Kansspelautoriteit found that Legs Eleven Limited ran large-scale commercial bingo events in the Netherlands without meeting the legal requirements for unlicensed gambling activity.
 

Key Points

The KSA issued formal warnings to both Legs Eleven Limited and Rotterdam venue Maassilo after determining that Bingo Loco events constituted illegal gambling under Dutch law

Following regulatory intervention, the events were restructured as music quizzes, removing them from the scope of gambling legislation
 

The Netherlands' gambling regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has taken action against Legs Eleven Limited, the organizer behind the Bingo Loco entertainment concept, after establishing that the company hosted bingo events in violation of Dutch gambling law. 

The events took place at venues including the Maassilo in Rotterdam and Complex in Maastricht.

The KSA issued written warnings to both Legs Eleven Limited and the Maassilo, concluding that the events qualified as games of chance and did not fall within the legal exemptions that allow bingo to be organized without a license. After engagement with the regulator, the organizer converted the events into music quizzes, which fall outside gambling regulations.

Under Dutch law, unlicensed bingo is permitted only under strict conditions: the organizer must be a Dutch association with at least three years of existence, not established for the purpose of running games of chance, and any proceeds must benefit a publicly announced charitable cause. 

Prize limits are set at €400 ($462) per prize and €1,550 per event, and the activity must be registered with the local municipality in advance. Bingo Loco's events, large-scale, public and commercial in nature, did not meet any of those criteria.

The KSA has the authority to impose penalty orders, administrative fines or seizure of materials and prizes when gambling is organized without a license.

Regarding guidance, the KSA has also moved to strengthen its responsible gambling framework, issuing updated duty of care guidance for licensed operators. The regulator said the revisions are intended to provide clearer expectations on how operators must identify and intervene in cases of problematic gambling behavior, particularly as the Dutch online market continues to mature.

The updated guidance places greater emphasis on proactive monitoring, requiring operators to act earlier when risk indicators emerge and to document interventions more thoroughly. 

 

 

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