Monday, November 27, 2006

A new study of the Spanish gambling market, undertaken by consulting firm
MECN, has promoted Spain as a potential key region for future growth for
both the online and land based gambling industry. The report highlights the
potential for imminent growth over the coming years particularly within the
retail betting sector and online gambling, as companies eagerly search for
new markets following the collapse of online enterprise in the US. UK based
betting firm William Hill has already begun its expansion into Spain, whilst
Ladbrokes is reportedly working on a market entry strategy that could see it
join its British counterpart in the near future. Spanish football has also
seen a number of its major teams sign sponsorship deals with online gambling
companies as online operators look to less restrictive regions. Martin
Oelbermann, co-author of the study, explained, 'In nearly all of our surveys
and interviews the operators mentioned Spain as a particularly attractive
jurisdiction for future expansion.' So why Spain? The report highlights a
number of factors as to why the Spanish market would appeal to foreign
online operations, not least because major players such as William Hill
already have joint venture agreements in place. However, one of the
country's
primary attractions is that many of its regions are currently working
towards the liberalisation of its gambling market which is expected to grow
to around ?39 billion by 2010.