Google may find itself liable for compliance with Italy’s strict gambling advertising laws according to the EU Advocate General, though it is far from a concrete ruling.

Gambling advertising is prohibited in Italy, whether on the television, in print, in public spaces such as via billboards, via sponsorship of sports clubs, or on the internet. The laws on gambling advertising have been in place since the 2018 enforcement of the Dignity Decree by order of the former Lega Nord and 5-Star Movement coalition government.

The decree sees the Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni (AGCOM), Italy’s communications authority, continue enforcement actions against Google. The tech giant has subsequently appealed against these.

Google argues liability

Notable instances included a €750,000 fine in 2022 and a €2.25m fine in 2023, with the former being the main subject of the Advocate General’s opinion. The lesser of the two fines related to YouTube, and the presence of gambling ads on the platform in Italy, which AGCOM asserts is in violation of the country’s advertising laws.

In the 2022 instance, AGCOM identified 630 videos uploaded by a content creator with the username ‘Spike’. This content creator held a commercial partnership with Google under the YouTube Partnership Programme and published the videos across five channels, with the videos featuring protons for gambling websites.

In essence, the case revolves around whether Google was complicit in these gambling adverts being posted in Italy on its platform by a partner creator, or whether the creator in question is the one who holds ultimate responsibility. Google did, however, remove all 630 videos upon receiving an order from AGCOM.

Google’s appeals against these enforcement actions have now reached the European level. In the Advocate General’s opinion, the EU’s Directive 2000/31, which establish rules around information services in the EU, does apply to Google’s operations. This could provide the firm some exemption from Italian gambling adverising rules, but the company’s liability is the main sticking point.

The Advocate General is of the opinion that Google definitely clarifies as a ‘hosting service’, but Italian and European authorities will have to determine whether the company is a ‘passive’ or ‘active’ hosting service.

Google asserts that it is the former, which would mean it had no knowledge of the illegal gambling advertising being promoted by one of its partner content creators. This would exempt the company from liability under Directive 2000/31.

A sticking point for Italy

The role of an Advocate General is not an authoritative one. Advocates General are EU functionaries who offer an expert legal opinion on cases brought before the European courts, offering observation and guidance on developing cases.

Whether or not courts will rule in favour of ACGOM or Google is another matter entirely, and we’ll have to just wait and see how it plays out. What the case, and the Advocate General’s opinion, tells us, however, is that advertising will remain a key challenge in Italy’s betting market.

Italy recently re-launched its betting market under a new regulatory regime overseen by the Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM). The regime sees 46 companies hold licences for 52 different websites, with new rules around domains restricting each licence to one website, in doing so significantly reducing the number of active gambling websites in Italy.

In comparison to the Netherlands, Germany, France and now the UK, Italian gambling stakeholders have a much more favourable view of the country’s tax framework, but a much less favourable view of advertising and marketing restrictions.

These restrictions have also earned the ire of sports stakeholders, who are denied a highly lucrative source of revenue. While Italy’s new betting market got off to a flying start when it launched last month, the Google v AGCOM case shows that advertising will remain its biggest challenge.

2026 all eyes on Dignity Decree repeal

As the Meloni government advances to Phase 2 of the reorganisation of Italy’s gambling sector, the terms of the Dignity Decree are expected to be revised and replaced.

Negotiations are being led by Sports Minister Andrea Abodi, alongside Luciano Buonfiglio, President of Italy’s Olympic Committee, and Ezio Simonelli, President of Serie A, representing Italy’s professional football leagues.

Abodi has proposed that Italian gambling licensees face a new levy on advertising campaigns (charged on volume and coverage), with the proceeds earmarked for the renovation of Italy’s historic football stadiums, as well as fresh funding for grassroots sports in underprivileged regions/municipalities, and initiatives to improve access to sport for women.

Previous deliberations by the Tribunale del Lazio, Italy’s business and administrative court, have favoured repealing the Dignity Decree, with judges noting that the law has generated an excessive number of legal disputes over media and advertising, overwhelming the court’s capacity and disrupting its schedule.