LiveScore Group announces that it will withdraw its sports betting brand LiveScore Bet from the Bulgarian market by the end of 2025. This exit is seen as a "strategic mitigation" measure in response to the UK gambling tax increase, and the uncertainty of potential tax increases in Bulgaria has also intensified this decision. Related global gambling tax policy dynamics can be queried through the PASA official website.
Main Cause: Sharp Increase in UK Tax Pressure
This tax reform puts significant pressure on operators! The UK's Autumn Budget 2025 specifies that the Remote Gaming Duty will increase sharply from 21% to 40%, effective from April 2026; the Remote Betting Duty will also rise from 15% to 25%, taking effect in April 2027, and will only apply to online betting profits, excluding self-service terminals and other services. LiveScore explicitly states that this "significant tax increase" is the main reason for exiting Bulgaria.
Secondary Factor: Uncertainty in the Bulgarian Market
The uncertainty in the Bulgarian market is adding insult to injury! The Bulgarian government has already preliminarily discussed raising gambling taxes to fill the national budget deficit, and this policy ambiguity poses additional risks to LiveScore's operational planning. The group states that withdrawing from Bulgaria is to refocus resources to ensure the robustness and flexibility of future operations.
Industry Chain Reaction: High Tax Rates Spark Widespread Controversy
The industry's opposition to these high tax rates is significant! Graeme Hurst, CEO of the UK Gambling and Gaming Commission, believes that excessively high online tax rates will undermine employment, investment, and growth; executives from giants like Entain and Flutter have also expressed concerns. Interestingly, the CEO of Sweden's ATG has proposed that his country emulate the UK's tax increase, even suggesting exemptions for horse race betting, an idea that has been strongly criticized by the Swedish Online Gambling Trade Association as "self-harmful" and likely to foster a black market.
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This article is from "PASA-Global iGaming Leaders" gambling industry news channel:https://t.me/pasa_news
Original in-depth gambling channel:https://t.me/gamblingdeep
Free data reports: @pasa_research
PASA Matrix: @pasa002_bot
PASA official website: https://www.pasa.news
