The Paris 2024 Olympics are set to kick off with an unprecedented and ambitious opening ceremony along the iconic River Seine. Billed as the biggest open-air show on Earth, this spectacle will shut down the city centre and its airspace, mobilize 45,000 police officers, several army units, and has taken two years of secret rehearsals to prepare.

This much-awaited for event promises to be unforgettable, showcasing Paris’s rich cultural heritage and spirit of innovation. As the world watches, Paris will once again prove why it is known as the City of Light.

For the first time in Olympic history, the opening ceremony will take place outside a stadium. Instead of the traditional parade around a stadium track, over 8,000 of the world’s top athletes will be transported by boat along a 6km stretch of the River Seine. This sporting armada will be witnessed by more than 300,000 spectators from the bridges and riverbanks, with police, frogmen, and snipers ensuring security.

We decided it was the right moment to deliver this crazy idea and make it real”
– Emmanuel Macron

As the athletes glide down the river, a dazzling array of performances will unfold around them. Dancers, pop stars, tightrope walkers, and acrobats will perform daring feats on water, rooftops, bridges, and artificial islands. The show will feature pontoons, floating pianos, helicopters, and possibly even submarines, culminating in a vast laser show finale beamed from the Eiffel Tower. More than 1 billion people are expected to watch live on TV and social media.

The idea of staging such a grand event along a large stretch of river in a city under its highest terrorism alert was initially met with skepticism. Even French President Emmanuel Macron thought it was “a crazy and not very serious idea” at first. 

The exact details of the nearly four-hour-long show have been kept tightly under wraps. However, as the decor, including floating skateparks, giant replicas of paintings, and oversized gold tinsel, began to be placed in and around the Seine, some clues have emerged.

In the early evening, delegations of athletes from more than 200 countries will be bussed from the Olympic village to a spot at the Seine in the east of Paris. There, they will board boats from specially built pontoons under the guard of the French military. The delegations will then sail side by side down the Seine, past Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louvre, towards the Eiffel Tower. The Greek federation will be first, followed by the Olympic Refugee team, and then other nations, with the French boat coming last.

The Paris Olympics river parade will follow the course of the Seine for 6km, starting from Pont d’Austerlitz and coming to a stop at the Pont d’Iéna before the opening ceremony’s finale at the Trocadéro.

As the athletes sail, a revolutionary and irreverent show will unfurl around them, full of surprises. Historical monuments, rooftops, bridges, the sky, and the water will provide simultaneous settings for overlapping dance, music, acrobatics, and light shows. These performances will explore the history of Paris in all its diversity and its tradition of rebellion. Tightrope walkers will cross the river on high wires, the star French ballet dancer Guillaume Diop will perform on a rooftop, and BMX freestyle bikers will backflip over the water. The French pop star Aya Nakamura, who faced a racist backlash earlier this year over the possibility that she would sing, will also perform.

SiGMA East Europe Summit powered by Soft2Bet, will take place in Budapest from 2-4 September 2024

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is set to determine whether German bettors can claim refunds for their losses from operators who offered their services without valid licenses before the German sports betting regulation. This decision follows a referral from Germany’s Federal Court of Justice, Bundesgerichtshof (BGH).

From 2012 to 2020, many betting operators applied for German licenses but faced a lengthy bureaucratic process that resulted in no licenses being issued for years. Despite this, operators continued their services under licenses from other EU countries, such as Malta. According to German law, operating without a valid German license is illegal, which could void any contracts issued during this period and entitle consumers to claim refunds.

The case originated when a claim for €3,719.26 worth of losses was presented in front of a German district court. The plaintiff argued that Tipico, being unlicensed during the time of the bets, should pay back the losses. The district court dismissed the case and the appeal. However, a growing number of cases involving reimbursement from operators have been presented to the courts and treated inconsistently, leading the BGH to seek a definitive ruling from the European Court of Justice.

The EU promotes the free movement of services within the union, and this principle could lead the ECJ to rule in favour of the operators. The companies argue that the flawed German licensing process should not be held against them. They believe the EU court might rule against the refunds, aligning with a previous decision that identified the German licensing process as incompatible with EU regulations. If the ECJ sides with the operators, it would validate their operations during the licensing void and potentially limit their financial liabilities.
German Sports Betting Association president Mathias Dahms declared, “We are confident that the ECJ will rule in favour of the providers and the European freedom to provide services, as it has already done in the past.”

France’s gambling regulator, the Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ), published its 2023 activity report. According to the report, over 38% of the sector’s revenue still comes from problematic gambling. To fight problematic behaviours, the regulator aims to change people’s perceptions of gambling.

The gambling sector in France has experienced notable growth, with a turnover of €13.4 billion, marking a 50% increase since the market was regulated in 2011. Today, over half of the French population participates in some form of gambling, collectively spending more than €55 billion annually.

The iGaming sector also showed significant growth, with a total Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) of €2.3 billion, up 7.2% from 2022. Sports betting dominates this segment, accounting for 63.3% of the online GGR, followed by poker (21.6%) and horse betting (15.1%). Football remains the most popular sport for betting, with wagers totalling €4.443 billion.

However, “gambling is not a product like any other,” the report states, as the ANJ advocates for a less intensive model to curb “consumers’ natural propensity to gamble”. The growing gambling market does come with its set of challenges, as problematic gambling behaviours still contribute to over 38% of the sector’s revenue.

The 2023 activity report also focuses on the ongoing battle against illegal online gambling, which generates between €748 million and €1.5 billion annually. The ANJ identified 510 illegal websites, with a significant portion of traffic stemming from online casino games.

The ANJ aims to change people’s perspectives about gambling: it should be viewed as a recreational activity rather than a pathway to easy money, the report reads. The regulator hopes this new representation of gambling will reduce the associated social harms.

The ANJ also advocates for stricter regulations on game design to pre-emptively evaluate and address addiction risks and prevent underage gambling. Moreover, the regulator has demanded that operators intensify their efforts in identifying and supporting excessive gamblers, and implementing stricter verification processes.

In 2023, the regulation of promotional strategies was an important project for the ANJ. The regulator stressed the need for balanced promotion strategies that do not exploit vulnerable populations, especially as 2024 will be packed with major sporting events (Euro 2024 and the Paris Olympic Games).

The ANJ’s comparative analysis of the 17 licensed online operators and the two exclusive operators (FDJ and PMU) revealed adherence to promotion guidelines aimed at preventing excessive and underage gambling.

However, the role of influencers in promoting gambling, especially among young people, is judged more concerning. A study indicated that 62% of young gamblers follow at least one influencer, with 49% having made purchases based on influencer recommendations. To curb the influence of these marketing strategies, the ANJ recommended that gambling operators avoid partnerships with influencers whose audiences include more than 16% minors.

The French regulator, ANJ, released a statement today (July 25) forecasting up to €240 million in bets for the Paris Olympic Games. The statement discusses potential developments for the Paris Olympics and assesses the outcomes of its actions during Euro 2024.

The ANJ projects that betting during the Paris Olympic Games could reach €240 million, double the amount wagered during the Tokyo Games in 2021. A study by Toluna-Harris Interactive cited by the ANJ found that 25% of French people interested in the Olympics are considering betting. Of these potential bettors, 74% say that the Games being held in Paris increases their interest in betting, even though 64% did not bet during the Tokyo Games four years ago.

Among the 32 sports represented at the Olympic Games, the ANJ received licensing requests for all sports except breaking, skateboarding, surfing, swimming (artistic and diving), gymnastics (rhythmic and trampoline), and equestrian (dressage and eventing).

Compared to 2023, the amount wagered has increased by 24% (€5.2 billion) in the first half of 2024, with gross gaming revenue rising by 16% (€871 million). The number of active player accounts has also grown by 16%, exceeding 2 million accounts.

During Euro 2024, however, only half of the anticipated betting revenue was collected. French operators registered €650 million in bets, roughly the same amount as during Euro 2021.

Factors cited by the ANJ for this shortfall include the political context in France during the tournament and limited media coverage due to the upcoming Olympics.

Additionally, France’s fewer goals and absence from the final contributed to the lower revenue.

One reason many stakeholders have cited for the anticipated amounts being nearly halved is the weak channelisation. However, the ANJ clarifies that although the number of illegal operators and websites has increased, the actual volume of bets placed on these platforms remains relatively low.

A new risk monitoring system will be in place during the competition to prevent sports manipulation, involving cooperation among the ANJ, COJOP (Comité d’Organisation des Jeux Olympiques et Paralympiques), IOC (International Olympic Committee), and various national and international partners. This is the first time the Olympics are hosted in a country with a dedicated national platform for combating sports manipulation, explains the ANJ.

This platform, led by the Minister of Sports, includes various government ministries, sports organisations, and gaming operators. The ANJ will oversee betting activities, manage alerts, and coordinate actions.

Internationally, a network of national platforms, supported by the Council of Europe and comprising nearly forty countries, will facilitate information exchange to fight international organised crime.