Italy delays land-based gambling reform as political consensus remains out of reach

Italy’s land-based gambling sector still does not have a clear regulatory roadmap. After two years of talks between the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) and the Conference of Regions and Autonomous Provinces, the government has still not approved the final terms of the retail-sector overhaul.

1. Last week in Rome, it emerged that Giorgia Meloni’s office rejected the final version of the decree and sent it back to the MEF for another review. Alfredo Mantovano, undersecretary at the Presidency of the Council, confirmed that any final decree will not change the minimum distances currently imposed by regional authorities between gambling venues and sensitive sites such as schools.
2. The delay is a setback for the executive’s regulatory agenda. After pushing through the online gambling market reform in November 2025, Meloni wanted to complete the land-based overhaul before 29 August, when the government’s fiscal delegation powers expire. The land-based file is more politically complicated because the central government and regional administrations disagree on who gets to control the sector.
3. The main dispute in Italy is still the minimum-distance rule. The MEF wanted to harmonise the fragmented regional rules and set common standards for minimum distances, opening hours, venue certification, and concessions. The regions are resisting that handover, treating gambling as a public-health issue rather than a sector to be centrally standardised.
4. The stalemate also complicates the new retail concession programme. Before last week’s setback, negotiations focused on compensation terms with the Conference, which represents the country’s 20 autonomous provinces and 110 municipalities. If the regional distance restrictions remain in place, it will be hard to launch new tenders for betting shops, slot machine venues, and bingo halls, because operators cannot find sites that meet the current requirements.
5. The fiscal angle is not small. The new concession auctions were expected to raise between 1.960 and 2.180 million dollars in upfront licence revenue. The broader reform was also meant to give operators more legal certainty and create a uniform regulatory framework across the country, but for now Italy is still sitting on a draft and a deadline.