Germany revokes Tipster’s sports betting licence

Tipster had been operating under a multi-state licence in the country, but GGL said that the operator no longer met the requirements of this licence.

GGL did not disclose the specific reasons for revoking the licence but did state the decision was made to ensure player protection. It added that was no longer guaranteed with Tipster.

Tipster was also removed from the country’s white list of approved gambling operators.

“We take consistent action against licence holders if they violate elementary rules of the State Treaty on Gaming,” GGL board member Ronald Benter said.

The withdrawal comes just weeks after lawyer Dr Jörg Gollnick was appointed as provisional insolvency administrator for Tipster as part of insolvency proceedings against the business.

Gollnick, who works at Cologne law firm Heidland Werres Diederichs Rechtsanwälte, is also the provisional insolvency administrator for Tipster Service GmbH.

Alleged Tipster raid

This followed a series of raids at locations across Germany in April over an investigation into an unnamed sports betting operator.

The raids took place in North Rhine-Westphalia, Bremen, Berlin, Saxony and Bavaria and were the result of a two-and-a-half-year-long investigation into alleged criminal activities. 

The alleged criminal activities include offering illegal gambling and forming a criminal organisation. A total of six people were arrested during the raids.

At the time, German tabloid Bild reported that the raids in Cologne took place at Tipster’s headquarters.

German Sports Betting Association (DSWV) released a statement confirming that the operator at the centre of the raids was not a member of the association.