The Guardian News

Problem gambling experts have criticised rival factions of the betting industry for waging a “selfish” war of words to protect their own interests amid the threat of tighter regulation. The UK’s leading gambling charity also warned that a “narrow” focus on controversial fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs), potentially ignoring online betting...

I was one of those who said it could never be done: that a computer wouldn’t ever manage to beat the best at the game of poker. I was romantic and wide-eyed at 18, when my heroes were the cowboys from Texas who ruled the felt. They were uneducated...

Britain and Gibraltar count as one EU state in terms of a key aspect of the single market, a senior EU lawyer has said in an opinion that could affect the territory’s life after Brexit. The lawyer rebuffed a challenge by Gibraltar’s huge electronic gambling industry, the mainstay of...

The Gambling Commission has entered a heated discussion over events at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day, asking anyone to come forward who may have evidence of bookmakers forcing an unwarranted deduction from winnings on the last race, won by the favourite, Cap Soleil. A deduction of five pence in the pound...

The National Lottery operator, Camelot, is “considering its options” after the man who allegedly claimed a £2.5m prize by fraudulent means was named in the media as a convicted rapist. The Gambling Commission said on Thursday that it had fined Camelot£3mfor paying out the £2.5m prize in 2009 on a ticket that...

Global casino operators are vying to move into Japan’s potentially lucrative market after a ban was lifted by lawmakers in Tokyo, despite warnings over gambling addiction and the involvement of organised crime. Japan’s parliament approved legislation in the early hours of Thursday allowing the construction of “integrated resorts” that...

Problem gambling costs the UK up to £1.2bn a year, according to a report that its authors say should serve as a “wakeup call” to the government. The report, commissioned by charity GambleAware and written by the IPPR thinktank, charts the costs associated with problem gambling, such as mental health...

The amount gamblers can stake on controversialshould be slashed and councils given powers to stop bookmakers “clustering” betting shops on high streets, an influential group of MPs has said. The recommendations, timed to coincide with a government review of betting machines, won support from gambling campaigners but were dismissed as...

The founder of Paddy Power Betfair, Britain’s biggest bookmaker, privately lobbied against betting machines frequently dubbed the “crack cocaine” of gambling, it has emerged. Stewart Kenny, the former chief executive of the betting giant he founded, wrote that there was “no public demand” for fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs), on...

Nearly half a million children a week gamble and 9,000 are problem gamblers, according to a study by the industry regulator. The Gambling Commission’s Young People and Gambling report(pdf) found that while rates of smoking, drinking and drug-taking among children have declined, gambling rates have remained largely static, with 450,000 11-...

They say the bookie always wins, but not on Tuesday night. Three weeks ago, bookmaker Paddy Power paid out £800,000 in winnings to punters who had backed Hillary Clinton to be the next US president, only now to be left with a bill for £4m to pay clients who...

Ministers have launched a review of the gambling industry, including fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs) that have been accused of being highly addictive. The review was announced by Tracey Crouch, the sport minister, who said it would consider the maximum stakes and prizes for gaming machines. It will look...

Bookies could lose licences over claims they use ‘misleading promotions’ and ‘unfair terms’ to deceive customers Online betting companies who overturn gamblers’ winning bets using loopholes buried in the small print of their websites face losing their licences, after the competition regulator launched a probe into the industry. The...

William Hill and its Canadian suitor Amaya have ended talks over a potential £4.6bn (CAD$7.2bn) merger following opposition from some of the UK bookmakers’ major shareholders. Earlier this month, the companies said they were pursuing a “merger of equals”, but on Tuesday William Hill said it was walking away from...

A system set up by bookmakers to address problem gambling is in disarray, according to campaigners, after a report exposed vast differences in how firms apply the measures. The report, produced by accountancy group PwC and seen by the Guardian, found flaws in how betting shops use “player awareness...