Deputies have submitted an amendment to the Lithuanian Gambling Act, which will further tighten advertising rules from 2025. About 50 deputies, mostly from the ruling Fatherland Union party, signed the amendment, which prohibits gambling operators from sponsoring public events, functions, activities, individuals or legal entities.
Gambling names and logos will not appear on sporting venues or on players’ clothing.
Lithuania already has strict rules regarding gambling advertising, which effectively prohibit operators from promoting their products. The National Gambling Supervisory has issued fines for various violations of these rules, which limit communication with players to information only. According to the new rules, operators can only publish information in industry publications. In addition, the display of company names and brands at head offices and gambling establishments will continue to be permitted.
The measures were proposed after Sarunas Stepukonis, a former partner at BaltCap Infrastructure Fund, was accused of embezzling millions of euros from the company and causing losses.
According to Mindaugas Linge, who presented the amendments, revenue from the gambling business in Lithuania in 2023 increased to 222.2 million euros, which is more than twice as much as in 2020 (103 million euros). Advertising spending in the sector doubled from €6.36 million in 2020 to €12.73 million in 2023, while operator profits increased from €20 million to more than €53 million.
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