Campania regional court upholds refusal of Bacoli betting shop licence

The Campania Regional Administrative Court has upheld the refusal of a licence for a new betting shop on Viale Olimpico in Bacoli, Italy, confirming the decision issued by the Questura di Napoli. The court rejected the company's appeal, so the betting collection activity at the premises cannot begin.

The refusal dates to May 2023, when the Questura di Napoli rejected the company's application for a licence under article 88 of the TULPS. The measure rested on checks by the municipal police of Bacoli, communicated to the Pozzuoli police station, which found that the distance limits from sensitive locations had not been met. Under the Campania regional law, new betting collection premises may not open within 250 metres of schools or other places frequented by vulnerable groups.

The company disputed how the distance had been calculated, arguing that access points other than the main entrances of the buildings had been used. According to technical reports it produced, the distance from the school would have been 269.70 metres using the access points it considered correct, above the legal limit.

The court found the municipal police's checks fully reliable. Its measurements gave walking distances of between 200 and 237 metres depending on the routes considered, in each case below the 250-metre minimum.

In its reasoning, the court said the actual use of access points by the school population must be considered, rather than purely formal criteria, and it was therefore correct to use the school's external pedestrian access, reached by a disabled ramp and stairs, instead of the internal door indicated by the company. On the betting shop, the judges noted that the distance between the premises' two entrances was only 12 metres and that the limit would not have been met even using the entrance suggested by the appellant.

The court also referred to the primary purpose of the regional distance rules, which are intended to prevent gambling disorder and protect the most vulnerable people, and to the wide discretion of the public security authority in granting authorisations under article 88 of the TULPS, directed mainly at protecting public order and security.

With the appeal dismissed, the court ordered the appellant company to pay legal costs of €1,000 in favour of the state administrations and €1,000 in favour of the Comune di Bacoli, plus statutory additions.