Czech Republic Market Report
million were foreign tourists, while 12.5 million were domestic visitors. From January to December 2023, the highest number of tourists came to Te Czech Republic from Germany, which accounted for one-quarter of all tourist clientele, with a total of 2.3 million visitors. Slovakia was the second most frequent country of origin, with 867,000 visitors, followed by the UK with 759,000 visitors. Polish, American, and Italian tourists were among the most frequent visitors. According to the Czech Statistical Office 7.4 million tourists – both domestic and inter- national – visited Prague in 2023 - an increase of about 25 per cent year on year.
HOW GAMBLING IS REGULATED Gambling regulation in the Czech Republic is primarily governed by Act No. 186/2016 Coll. (Collection of Laws on Gambling). In 2017 it came into force and replaced the old lottery act which had existed since the 1990s. Te idea of the 2017 act was to bring the Czech market in line with European legislation and curb gambling addiction issues and reduce the black market. Te legislation establishes the essential legal framework that defines the conditions under which gambling can be conducted in the country, as well as the authority of administrative bodies involved in gambling operations. Te main regulatory authorities are the Ministry of Finance
of the Czech Republic (MF), municipal offices, and the Customs Administration of the Czech Republic (CS). Te Customs Ad- ministration is responsible for overseeing gambling operations and ensuring compliance with the established laws. In addition, the Ministry of Finance acts as a supervisory authority, providing guidance and oversight in the management of gambling activ- ities.
Te Act differentiates between types of gambling: u Lotteries u Sports betting
u Totalizator games u Bingo
u
Technical games. Technical games are gambling games operated through technical devices and are played by the players them- selves. Tis category includes slots and electronic table games such as electronic roulette and dice, which are played in gaming halls or casinos.
u
Live games. Tese include casino games which are played at gaming tables in casinos, such as card games, roulette, or dice. Up until recently only live games could only be operated in casinos.
u Tombolas u Small-scale tournaments 106
MUNICIPALITIES AND GAMBLING Te number of slot parlours has been on the decline for several years. In fact single slots machines in bars and restaurants have all but disappeared following the introduction of legislation in 2012. An amendment to the Lottery Act in that year granted each individual municipal region the right to impose restrictions or bans on certain activities meaning that the municipalities were permitted the right to permit or restrict gaming operations in their territories in the form of local generally binding regulations. In 2017, Finance Minister Alena Schillerová informed the
press that over the previous seven years, the number of casinos had decreased by three-quarters, and the total number of gaming machines had nearly halved, bringing the count to under 39,000. “I’m definitely very satisfied with how things are going,” she
said. “Te Czech Republic has ceased to be a casino in the heart of Europe. Since January 2012, the number of casinos is down from 7,600 to roughly 1,800 – one quarter as many. So that’s a great result.” Te Minister noted that this decline served as evidence that the Gambling Law of 2017 was having a positive impact. She added that while most brick-and-mortar casinos had received a renewal of their licenses the previous year, they now operated under stricter regulations. In 2021, local generally binding regulations were in place in as many as 709 municipalities, of which 444 completely banned
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