Bulgaria notifies EU of gambling advertising ban that keeps sports sponsorship

Bulgaria notified the European Commission on 15 October 2026 of a draft law amending and supplementing its Gambling Act, registered as 2026/0558/BG in the EU technical notification system. The notification opens the three-month standstill period set by Directive (EU) 2015/1535, during which the Commission and other member states may submit observations or reasoned opinions before the text is approved.

The draft's new Article 10 bans advertising of gambling, of gambling operators and of their commercial brands and distinctive signs, regardless of form, method or place of dissemination. It sets four exceptions: information an operator publishes on its own website and in licensed premises where necessary to organise and take part in the game; the broadcast of draws by the state lottery Totalizator Sportiven Balgarski and announcements of its prizes; the facades of gambling premises, under strict limits; and sports sponsorship.

For premises facades, signs and advertisements may not cover more than 20% of the facade or exceed 50 square metres, and at least 10% of that surface must carry the warning that gambling carries a risk of developing addiction. Illuminated panels and screens with dynamic, moving or changing content are not permitted.

Sports sponsorship is retained: an operator's brand may appear on kit, facilities, pavilions, stadiums, pools and materials of federations and clubs, excluding any kit or product intended for minors. In these cases only the operator's registered trademark may be shown and, at sponsored events, also its corporate name. Licensed operators may continue to sponsor licensed clubs, federations and sports organisations, as well as events supporting culture, health and education, and sponsored parties' websites may display the operator's brand or name.

The text limits broadcasts: on television or the internet the sponsor's brand may not be added electronically or digitally if it is not physically present at the venue, which rules out virtual advertising during matches.

The draft tasks the Council for Electronic Media, Bulgaria's audiovisual regulator, with monitoring the media space and passing detected infringements to the National Revenue Agency, which supervises gambling in Bulgaria. The agency may order the suspension or blocking of websites, mobile applications, social media profiles and video and streaming platforms that advertise gambling, operators or their brands.

The reform removes the granting of licences to promote gambling through affiliates from the agency's competences, so that licence disappears from the law. Affiliates who recruit players in exchange for commissions have required that licence since August 2026. The text also adds deposits to a provision that already mentioned simultaneous gaming sessions, and extends another provision, until now referring to betting, to machine gaming and casino games.

The sanctions regime is updated to the euro, Bulgaria's official currency since 1 January 2026. Operators that breach the rules face fines of €20,000 to €50,000; until now the penalty was 30,000 to 50,000 leva and covered only illegal advertising. For the first time, those who publish, broadcast or disseminate the advertising are also sanctioned: individuals face €10,000 to €20,000 and companies €20,000 to €50,000, with the penalty doubled for repeat offences.

The notified text differs from the draft the Finance Ministry put to public consultation on 23 September, open until 23 October. That day, Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced a total ban on gambling advertising. The government text was notified to Brussels on 2 October as 2026/0536/BG and, besides the advertising ban, includes tax measures: the variable online gambling rate would rise from 20% to 21% in 2027 and to 22% in 2028, with a minimum of €100,000 a month per operator. The text notified on 15 October is much shorter, amending only three articles on advertising, the agency's competences and sanctions, and contains no tax measures.

In September, two opposition parties, Continuamos el Cambio and Bulgaria Democrática, had submitted their own proposals in the National Assembly to ban gambling advertising entirely. The debate coincides with greater organisation in the Bulgarian sector: its trade body, the Association of Organisers of Games and Gambling Activities of Bulgaria (AOGGAB), together with Serbia's AGOS, promoted the creation of the Balkan Gambling Federation, which elected its first president in October.