Country
Association of Organizers of Gambling Games and Activities in Bulgaria (AOGGAB, in Bulgarian СОХИДБ)
Krasno Selo District, Lyulin Planina St. No. 33A, fl.1 – Sofia, BULGARIA
Chairman: Milen Totev
Vice-Chairman: Gavril Chetrafilov
International Relations Coordinator: Todor Chetrafilov
Public Relations Coordinator: Stelian Dimitrov
The Association of Organizers of Gambling Games and Activities in Bulgaria (AOGGAB, in Bulgarian СОХИДБ) is a leading non-profit organization uniting over 100 companies that play a key role in the development of the gambling industry in the country. The main goals of the organization include protecting the rights of its members, combating illegal gambling, and promoting responsible gambling. AOGGAB actively participates in legislative processes, creates a unified community, and provides a predictable environment for legal businesses. The association also raises awareness about the risks associated with gambling and supports social projects that benefit society.
One of the most prestigious events organized by AOGGAB is the “Gaming Industry Gala Dinner,” where the “Golden Spades” awards are presented to recognize achievements and innovations in the industry.
Contact Information:
Email: office@sohidb.bg
Phone: +359 89 661 0291
Bulgarian Website: https://sohidb.bg
International Website: https://aoggab.bg
The Bulgarian Association for Responsible Gambling is private non-profit organization founded in 2023 and based in Shumen, Bulgaria. The NGO was created because of the enhanced cooperation between several operators and equipment manufacturers in the field of land-based gaming, who gathered around the purpose of recognizing the importance of responsible gaming and promoting it on a national level.
Our mission is to foster an industry that prioritizes responsible gaming and player well-being through the promotion of responsible gambling practices, innovative solutions, and collaborative efforts.
Our vision is to have an enjoyable, and sustainable gaming environment in Bulgaria.
The association will aim to achieve this vision through:
- Initiating stakeholder collaboration in Bulgaria
- Coping with gambling-related issues and promoting responsible behavior among players
- Making donations and CSR initiatives
- Facilitating thematic workshops
- Exchanging good practices on licensing, AML, payment and marketing-related regulations on a national and EU-level
- Engaging in constructive dialogue with regulators and policymakers
Our members are mostly small and medium enterprises engaged in land-based gaming, equipment manufacturing and distribution, service providers to the gaming industry and other interested parties.
Bulgarian Association for Responsible Gambling welcomes as members not only gambling operators, software providers, equipment manufacturers, but also technology companies, media and marketing agencies, financial institutions, law firms and individual experts in the field.
The benefits of membership are networking opportunities with SME peers, regulators and policymakers, support in complying with regulations and standards, providing assistance in promoting responsible practices, receiving insights from the association’s international memberships and being part of a forward-thinking community focused on long-term sustainability.
CLUB DE CONVERGENTES is the strongest voice in the on-going dialogue with regional gambling authorities throughout Spain.
Founded in 2015, CLUB DE CONVERGENTES includes most of the main producers of gambling machines and related systems in Spain. Our principal objective consists in holding a constructive dialogue with the different regulatory bodies to maintain a stable and efficient legal environment for the activities of our members. This refers to regulatory requirements for gambling machines, accounting and jackpot systems, payment methods, access controls, etc. In addition, we intent to establish and maintain a positive and professional image of our industry.
In collaboration with the Platform for Sustainable Gambling, CLUB DE CONVERGENTES is also a leader in corporate social responsibility and responsible gaming in Spain. The FES Project (www.proyectofes.org), a social action aimed at preventing adolescent gaming and gambling addiction, has been received with great enthusiasm and success. Our aim is to continue our efforts to participate in the implementation of reasonable measures and initiatives to reduce the potential negative external effects of our activity.
In order to guarantee a sustainable future for our industry, CLUB DE CONVERGENTES also collaborates strongly with the different Spanish associations of operators of gaming venues, both on national and regional level.
Ul. Bratstva i Jedinstva br. 57
– Podgorica – MONTENEGRO
President : Aleksandar Špadijer
Vice-President/Vice-Chairman: Zoran Milosevic
Secretary General: Tatjana Scepanovic
The goal of “Montenegro Bet” is to improve all standards of operating in the area of games of chance in Montenegro, to raise awareness for the necessity of corporate social responsibility and for the Association “Montenegro Bet”, as a reputable partner and collocutor, to cooperate with authorities in the area of normative regulation of the area of games of chance, and all with the view of approaching European standards of operating in all areas.
Our Association’s main activities are:
- Donating for flooded and affected areas.
- Organising the visit and visiting Special Hospital in Belgrade for curing addiction, together with the Public Institution Kakaricka Gora Podgorica. Project title “Sharing regional experiences”.
- Signing the Protocol on Cooperation between the Association Montenegro Bet and the Public Institution for curing addiction Kakaricka Gora Podgorica. The complete funding of the project “Let games remain games” was done by the Association Montenegro Bet.
- The beginning of this project was related to promotional posters and flyers pointing out the risks of forming addiction to games of chance and how to prevent it. Promotional materials are displayed in betting offices of Association members, which means in more than 400 facilities all over Montenegro. The flyers include a mini test, where each person, by answering honestly, can assess whether or not they belong to the risk group, as well as the address where they can seek help. So far, over 15,000 flyers with the mini test were distributed to citizens who showed interest, and they are also displayed at each betting window and available to other interested persons, and each facility has a clearly visible poster warning against the dangers of forming addiction to games of chance.
- We are members of the Working Group for drafting the new Law on Games of Chance, by invitation of the Ministry of Finance of Montenegro
- We also participated in the Photo-Literary Competition “I’m telling you a story about Podgorica…”, as the general sponsor. This event was organised by the municipality of the Capital City.
- We regularly attend all events related to the field of social responsibility and the area of games of chance.
We are invited to attend and to give our opinion as participants at all gatherings that relate to the games of chance.
ASSOCIATION GAMING OPERATORS SERBIA (AGOS)
Milutina Milankovića 1l, Novi Beograd, REPUBLIC OF SERBIA
President of the board: Jovo Zagorac
President: Dragan Škrbić
Vice President: Darko Živanov
“AGOS” is unique, non-profit organization founded with the goal of improving business, creating more favorable economic environment and more efficient cooperation on the market of the Republic of Serbia in general (over 6,000 employees are employed in AGOS members companies) The most important values of each Association member are legality of business and high level of social responsibility. Our common mission is spreading awareness and educating about responsible approach to gambling and preventing addiction.
Our members do not question the principles of business legality. In our system, there are several thousand employees and we consider the people as drivers – the more we are gathered around the good mission, the synergy is stronger. We consider that the future of our industry is in the hands of all of us who jointly and activelyinfluence legal, commercial and social aspects of business. Open and transparent dialogue enables the best way to promote socially responsible practices.
One of the priorities of our association is to show best practices and promote initiatives for responsibly engaging in gambling. The game has meaning only if the player maintains control and boundaries-so that they enjoy the entertainment, have a healthy response to potential winning and perceive loss as part of the game. Every player as an individual must consciously consider time and money invested in a game, forgetting the support given by Organizers of games of chance, institutions and environment.
The industry of games of chance is an important economy sector on a global level, so the revenue it creates strongly affects economic development of society. This is why we consider that it is of great importance for every participant in this system respects legal framework, cultivates humanity as a central value and acts according to social responsibility values.
At the end of May 2022. AGOS signed a partnership and donation agreement with National Paralympic Committee of Serbia and Foundation of National Paralympic Committee of Serbia. The joint mission of the AGOS Association and the Paralympic Committee of Serbia is promotion and affirmation of Paralympic sports, and preparation for Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Millpark Road,
Enniscorthy,
Co. Wexford Y21 V528
IRELAND
President: Mr. James Rickard
General Secretary: Mr. John Roche
29-30 Ely Place,
London EC1N 6TD – UNITED KINGDOM
Chief Executive : John White
President : Greg Wood
Vice President(s) : Trevor Sutton
Treasurer : Chris Haley
BACTA represents the amusement machine industry through innovative stakeholder engagement and intelligent lobbying. It provides an encyclopaedic resource for its members on all aspects of its members’ businesses, particularly on gambling and tax law. Those businesses span the amusement machine supply chain from machine manufacturers, component manufacturers and software engineers, through to single-site operators and proprietors of Adult Gaming Centres. Its members also cover the owners and operators of seaside and inland family entertainment centres.
Street Elizeu no. 24, sector 1
Bucharest, Romania
President : Mr.George Niculescu
Executive President : Mr.Cristian Pascu
Director : Mr.Dan Vâjâianu
In the 1995 year A.O.P.J.N.R. was set up and it was the first such association occurred in Romania and even since its foundation it started to confront with many issues related to this new kind of economical activity.
Some of the first difficulties with which the association faced, were the absence of a well-defined legal frame, corresponding to the activity’s dynamics from that period and the need to persuade the authorities of the utility of A.O.P.J.N.R. acceptance as a dialogue partner in order to issue a new legislation for this area.
In the 1999 year occurs, as result of collaboration between Ministry of Finance and A.O.P.J.N.R. representatives, the G.D.- Government Decision (HG)No. 251 as norm for application the G.E.O.- Emergency Government Ordonance ( OUG) No. 69/1998 and that, through its content, makes a forward step for legally frame improvement for this area and recognizes the utility of A.O.P.J.N.R. by accepting its representatives participation to the Commission for Gaming Authorization meetings.
VAT appearance has started a new stage for A.O.P.J.N.R. dialogue with the authorities, action that has been concluded with VAT exemption for the gaming organization activity.
The 2005 year represented a moment of maximum importance for us, A.O.P.J.N.R. becoming member with full rights of Euromat – European Gaming and Amusement Federation.
In terms of legislation, year 2009 was a very important moment for A.O.P.J.N.R. through decisive involvement in drafting and approval of new normative acts in the field of gambling, namely the G.E.O. 77/2009 and G.D. 870/2009 , with which we contributed to the maintenance in the market of small and medium-sized operators.
The permanent involvement of A.O.P.J.N.R for protecting and promoting the interests of majority of operators continued also near O.N.J.N.( National Office for Games of Chance ) , in 2013 the new born institution dedicated to the gambling sector in Romania.
The evolution of the gambling sector and structural changes have made it necessary to amend the previous legislation, so in the year 2015, G.E.O.77/2009 was modified, and in 2016 the G.D.870/2009 was modified resulting in a new normative act G.D.111/2016, A.O.P.J.N.R. contributing decisively to the drafting of the two normative acts.
In the actual and last pandemic years, we concentrate together with the other profesional Association in our sector to explain the impact and determine the authorities to adopt legal solutions for compensate even partial the economic effects of the imposed restrictions.
Also , the diminuation of the impact on the majority of the operators from an abrupt changing of the actual technicall generation of slot machines, is our actual goal , for an extension of the neccessary transition period.
One of the most important achievements in the past years from EUROMAT, after the Declaration on Responsible Gambling in October 2007, was the launch of the booklet” The Responsible Gambling” in 2009.
A.O.P.J.N.R make a merit from managing their efforts to translate and print this booklet in Romanian language and to present it to the competent authorities in the field, to our members and not only , thus making the first steps towards the implementation of the concept.
In social terms, A.O.P.J.N.R. initiated the Responsible Gambler program since 2013, a program that promotes the application of principles of practicing the responsible gambling at the level of its members and informing briefly the players through flyers posted in location and through internet web site about the need to respect these principles in order to counteract the addiction this activity can generate.
For the future we intend to be part of the new set up in the last years Responsible Gaming Association, to integrate the industry efforts for that important subject , in the program Responsible Gambling .
The Romanian Association of Gaming Organizers and Producers (A.O.P.J.N.R.) includes at present producers and gaming organizers activating in Romania ,who own the license for producing , distributing or for operating land base gaming ( slot ) machines or bingo into halls.
Silvestru Street, no 79, Sector 2, 020734, Bucharest, Romania
President : Sorin Georgescu
Vice-President/Vice-Chairman: Ioana Bazavan
Secretary General: Valentina Dobre
Member: Gabriela Manu, Karoly Buzás, Adrian Georgescu, Plamen Valkanov
ROMSLOT is the voice of the gambling industry in Romania, bringing together the most important players in the slot machine industry, from gambling hall operators to device manufacturers.
Since its establishment, ROMSLOT continues to be the strongest voice in the dialogue with the Romanian authorities and carries out actions for a correct image of the industry. The main objectives of ROMSLOT are to streamline the regulation of slot-machine games, improvement of the reputation of the industry, but also to solve the punctual problems of the members.
ROMSLOT laid the foundations of the first and only integrated Romanian program (RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING) for education and prevention of gambling addiction as well as psychological counseling for people who have exceeded the recreational limit of gambling. Subsequently, the RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING program was embraced by the other organizations that represent players in the slot machine industry in Romania.
At the beginning of 2021, ROMSLOT launched THE TRUTH ABOUT GAMBLING.ro, the most daring communication campaign of the gambling industry in Romania. Through the portal www.AdevarulDespreGambling.ro we set out to be transparent and to tell the truth about an industry that faces many prejudices, myths and controversies. The main goal is to educate journalists, civil society and the political class on the fact that the gambling industry is not just about slot machines, entertainment, gambling halls and prizes. Gambling is one of the Romanian industries that are rigorously regulated and supervised, this industry means taxes, contributions, zero tax evasion, social responsibility, consistent support for the real estate market, consistent investments in continuing education of employees.
Bezuidenhoutseweg 12
2594 AV – The Hague – THE NETHERLANDS
Chairman : Aad Kobus
Vice Chairman : Mr. Kiffen
Secretary General : Sanne Muijser
Via Antonio Salandra, 1/A
IT – 00187 – Rome – ITALY
President : Domenico Distante
Vice-President (s): Patrizio Perla, Andrea Lo Massaro, Salvatore Pistoia, Sergio D’Angelo
Honorary President: Lorenzo Musicco
Dircksenstrasse 49
D – 10178 – Berlin – GERMANY
Honorary President: Mr Paul Gauselmann
Chairman of the Board: Dr. Daniel Henzgen, Manfred Stoffers
Chief Executive: Lars Rogge
Treasurer: Theo Kiesewetter
The VDAI represents and articulates the interests of the German coin-op manufacturers towards the Bundestag, federal parliaments, ministries and the public. Representatives of the association are active in numerous departments of other organisations, for example in the Federation of German Industries (BDI) and in the “Institut der Deutschen Wirtschaft” (IW). The VDAI provides information for its members about economic trends at home and abroad, statutory matters of importance and developments in parliament. The VDAI supports its members. For example: It handles technical matters requiring a Technical Committee and tunes the coordination of external image with its colleagues from the other coin-op associations. The members of the VDAI are informed about economic facts, trends on the coin-op machine market and through customer behavior statistics provided by the association. The VDAI has compilations of material on matters relating to the coin-op industry, on different legal questions and on problematic gambling behavior. The VDAI is a supporting organisation of the Self-Regulating Committee for Video Games (ASK). ASK examines coin-operated video machines concerning the legal point of view relating to the protection of minors. Since 2013 the tasks of the committee are embedded in the Youth Protection Law. The VDAI is a member of the umbrella organisation “Die Deutsche Automatenwirtschaft e.V.”, established in 2013. This membership optimizes the work of the top associations for representing the interests of the whole branch.
Am Weidendamm 1A
D -10117 – Berlin – GERMANY
Presidents: Mr. Thomas Breitkopf
Vice-President and Treasurer: Mr. Gundolf Aubke
Vice President: Ms Johanna Bergstein
Vice President: Mr Freddy Fischer
Vice President: Ms Julia Voß
Tratinska 2,
10 000 – Zagreb – Croatia
strong>President/Chairman: Zdenko Tomić
General Secretary: Filip Jelavić
Treasurer: Filip Jelavić
Special Advisor to the BoD: Dalibor Jelavić
The Croatian Gaming Association (CGA/HUPIS), known previously as the Croatian Association of Automat Club Works (HUAK), is a national association which acts upon the whole region of the Republic of Croatia. The main goal of HUPIS is to gather all organizers of games of chance in Croatia. Furthermore, the activities of the association consist of monitoring work and resolving issues that organizers of games of chance face, indicating irregularities and keeping the work consistent with legal directives, occupation standards and EU regulations.