SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
A quartet of European gambling operators’ formed by Casinos Austria, Genting Group, Partouche France and Grupo CIRSA (Spain) have confirmed a combined lawsuit against the Principality of Andorra for awarding its sole national casino licence to regional enterprise Jocs SA.
Last October the gambling operators demanded that Andorra’s executive and Gaming Control Board (CRAJ), move to annul the decision to award the principality’s casino licence to Jocs winning €10 million bid, citing a number of ‘grave tender process indiscretions’ favouring the regional incumbent.
Furthermore, the gambling quartet stated that they had identified multiple resource-based and operational requisites, demanded by the tender process that Jocs could not fulfil as winning party.
Approaching the close of 2018, the CRAJ confirmed that they would review the controversial Andorra casino tender process, which needed a month to re-evaluate judging criteria and technicalities.
The combined lawsuit, which is expected to be sanctioned on 4-to-7 January 2019, demands that Andorra not only annul its original licence decision but move to further expel Jocs SA as a licensed gambling operator.
The quartet states that CRAJ cannot undertake any review of its tender with Jocs, in consideration as a potential incumbent, as the firm had corrupted and interfered with the original bid process.
The pending lawsuit, states that Andorra’s executive risks “facing demands of damages and prejudices which will be both economic and reputational for the principality”
