Ireland has regulated various betting activities for over a century, with horse and greyhound races historically being the most popular betting pastimes. Lotteries are also very popular, like the Irish National Lottery, which was created in 1987.
Players can choose several lottery games, including instant win games, Lotto, scratch cards, EuroMillions, and Daily Million. Other popular games include sweepstakes, such as the Irish Hospitals’ Sweepstake, which was created in 1930 to fund hospitals and ran until the late 1980s.
Ireland differs from other European nations in that commercial casino gambling is illegal.
However, a loophole in Irish laws makes gambling possible if the establishments are private, membership-based organizations. Members-only casinos currently operating in Ireland include the Carlton Casino Club, Playland Casino, and Fitzpatrick’s Casino.
The Betting Act of 1854
This Act is the first know legislation passed to regulate Irish gambling. It was used for more than 100 years before being updated. The legislation created rules controlling how private homes and businesses could be used for betting and gambling activities.
The legislation also specified penalties for illegally conducting gambling operations on their property and for money laundering.
Gaming and Lotteries Act of 1956
This legislation recognized the growing popularity of member-only casino gambling in the country by encouraging more widespread legalised gaming by issuing licenses.
This new law provided for legalized lottery games by licensed lottery operators offering winnings no greater than £300, with the value of prizes printed on each coupon or ticket.
The Betting Act of 1931
This law raised the betting age for legal gambling from 16 to 18 years old. It’s curious why the age was set at 16 in the first place, other than perhaps the age of consent in the 18th century was much lower following cultural norms.
But fortunately, lawmakers recognized the folly of such practices and increased the age limit to a more reasonable level.
The 2013 Gambling Control Bill
This unpassed piece of legislation was sponsored in 2013 by Alan Shatter, an Irish lawyer, author, and former Fine Gael politician who served as Minister for Justice and Equality and Minister for Defense from 2011 to 2014.
If enacted, it’ll impose new regulations on the Irish online and offline betting industry, paving the way for many more physical casinos to open their doors in the country, changing the gambling landscape of Ireland.
The Betting Act 2015
This legislation was drafted and passed to amend the Betting Act of 1931, which failed to foresee the rise of online gambling. It became law in March 2015 and went into effect on August 1, 2015.
The amendment covers all remote gaming operators, regardless of their physical location or if they conduct business online or offline. If the operator accepts bets from any person in Ireland, then that operator is subject to Irish taxation and regulation.
Sites like BetFree list these regulated sites, that have registered with the Irish Revenue Commissioners.
The Gaming and Lotteries Act of 2019
The legislation passed in 2019 amended the Gaming Act of 1956 and specified that promoting gambling without a license is illegal, and persons doing so are subject to lawful punishment.
However, loopholes were created for local government officials to pass conflicting regulations allowing gambling in administrative regions to remain unaffected by the new law.
Conclusion
The gambling environment in Ireland is rapidly changing as the government scrambles to keep pace with the rising popularity of gaming and the breakneck speed of technological innovation that makes online gaming possible on a global scale.
New regulations are going so far as to include funding for the social impact of the gambling industry on society.
Through the establishment of a betting levy, gambling addiction treatment programs are funded, along with other initiatives that address socially responsible gambling behaviors and raise awareness about the detrimental effects of gambling.
The UK charitable organization, Gambling with Lives, has launched what they describe as “a ground-breaking new youth education program” designed to protect young people from the harmful consequences of gambling, to be introduced into the school systems in Essex, Manchester, and Northern Ireland.
Finally, advertising promoting gambling will be regulated to control how frequently and in what time blocks such ads can be displayed across media distribution channels like radio, television, and digital broadcasting.