Dutch Casinos Receive More Than €41M from Government

Casinos and gambling centres in the Netherlands had to close their doors from March 16 to July 1 during the lockdown. During the lockdown period, no revenues were earned but the cost of housing and personel continued. Therefore, the Dutch government published the first temporary measure to compensate the cost of salaries.

On July 10, the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) published a register. The register includes all companies that received an advance on the allowance in the first application period from March 1 to May 31. The register shows Dutch casinos received a minimum of €41.7 million in allowances over the three-month period.

Multinationals in the Netherlands like airliner KLM and the world leader in online travel and related services Booking.com were the top companies in the register receiving hundred of millions. But the government also spends tens of millions on casino and gambling centres. Big names in Holland are among the top companies in the gaming industry. State-owned Holland Casino received €31.9 million.

Other big-name gambling centres also cashed in millions of euros. JVH Gaming got €4.8 million, Fair Play 2.7 million and Hommerson €0.5 million. These were the biggest, but tens of other small businesses are on the list wist smaller amounts. The Dutch branch of international gaming operator Novomatic also got €1.1 million.

On July 1, the second temporary measure was released. It is expected the Dutch government will again spend tens of millions in the coming months in the gaming industry.