Bulgarian government proposes restrictions on public gambling advertising

Bulgaria's government has put forward a draft law that would impose a near-complete ban on gambling advertising in public spaces, Prime Minister Rumen Radew said at the presentation of the bill. The proposal covers billboards, posters and other public displays, and would bar casinos and gaming halls from using bright, flashing or illuminated signs and window decorations. Radew said the aim was to reduce the everyday visibility of gambling, arguing that such advertising harms young people and children. The measures have support across party lines, including from the opposition.

The source reports more than 1,000 gaming halls and 21 casinos in Bulgaria, mostly in the capital Sofia and near the border with Turkey, where customers are mainly tourists from Israel and Turkey. It also lists 51 online operators, about half of them offering sports betting. According to the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, between four and seven per cent of adult Bulgarians are problem gamblers, which the report says means more than 250,000 people. Around 53,000 people have voluntarily entered a register for those at risk of addiction, which bars them from casinos and gambling websites.

According to the Association of Gambling Operators (AGIB), the industry's payments to the state rose from about €130m to nearly €250m, of which only 10 per cent goes to measures against gambling addiction. The sector's revenue almost doubled in 2024 compared with the previous year, the source says, while accounting for less than one per cent of budget revenue. The draft law also provides for a further increase in the industry's payments alongside the advertising ban.

The source says earlier measures have had limited effect: after a ban on gambling advertising on radio and television introduced in 2024 and restrictions on opening new gaming halls in small towns, the business moved online. It adds that specialised treatment for problem gamblers is still lacking, with the only statutory health insurer not covering stays in a clinic; treatment is mainly provided by private therapeutic communities and centres, whose monthly costs are borne entirely by the families of those affected. The government is also working on a separate draft law targeting online betting platforms and microcredit companies, which the source says have developed a link allowing a loan to be obtained in 15 minutes and staked immediately.

Therapists welcomed the outdoor advertising ban but said it does not go far enough because advertising on social networks remains. Therapist Pawel Pawlow asked how the risk of gambling addiction could be tackled when children spend hours there watching video clips and advertising often backed by Bulgarian celebrities and entertainers. Sirma Georgiewa, chair of the association of addiction therapists, said a ban on advertising on motorways and roads alone is not enough to deal with the problem. She said she does not expect a total gambling ban in Bulgaria soon, saying the gambling industry is well connected and has its links to politics.

Opposition politician Boschidar Boschanow said gambling in Bulgaria had reached epidemic proportions. The source also reports the case of Martin Atanassow, 39, who said he gambled away a quarter of a million euros over three years and has been clean for almost two years; he is completing his school-leaving qualification and has regained contact with his 12-year-old son.