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Peers for Gambling Reform director Tim Miller highlights the importance of consolidating current reforms, rather than pursuing new directions.
In a speech made on September 3 at the Peers for Gambling Reform Gambling Summit, executive director Tim Miller highlighted the ongoing achievements of the Gambling Commission and pushed for an evidence-based approach to consolidate the work already done, rather than pursuing new types of reform.
“My encouragement to all of those that have an interest in making gambling fair, safe, and crime-free is do not allow a drive for future reforms to be at the expense of effective delivery and measurement of current reforms,” Miller said. “Because it is delivery, not further policy papers, that will actually protect consumers.”
He went on to express concern that many of those working on gambling reform introduce new ideas to campaign on, without ensuring that past, important reforms are being executed to the best possible extent. While Miller didn’t doubt the commitment of those involved to creating a fairer, safer gambling market, he emphasized the need to focus on the biggest priorities and evaluate how well compliance is being enforced.
“We are not going to rely upon gut instinct or belief to measure the success of [previous gambling reforms] – we will rely upon evidence,” he said.
The Gambling Commission’s achievements in gambling reform so far
Miller also took the opportunity to celebrate what has been achieved so far, congratulating the sector on “just some of the changes that we have delivered that have already come into force”. These include financial vulnerability checks to protect those who are at the greatest risk of harm, changes to direct marketing from operators, and new rules to reduce the speed and intensity of online gambling products.
He also applauded efforts to tighten age-verification, with staff at gambling premises now required to check the age of any customer who appears to be under 25 years of age and new rules introduced so that even smaller businesses must carry out age verification test purchasing.
“I am unapologetic in saying that the Commission must and will remain focused on delivering the already considerable statutory roles that Parliament gave to us,” concluded Miller. “We are equally committed to remaining focused on playing our part in implementing the Gambling Act Review White Paper, as quickly and efficiently as possible and then evaluating its effectiveness. This will then provide a strong evidence base to inform any discussions that there may be in the future about potential further reforms.”
Featured image: Gambling Commission
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Racing presenter Frankie Foster is the new face of a Betting and Gaming Council video series exposing the risks of the gambling black market.
Foster is fronting a new campaign from the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) that aims to expose the rapid growth of the UK black market, while also warning that raising taxes on regulating betting would only make the problem worse. At the moment, it’s estimated that around 1.5 million Britons are already gambling with unlicensed sites. That represents up to £4.3 billion ($5.8 billion) worth of bets.

Hundreds of illegal gambling sites are being shut down… but more keep popping up. Racing presenter @FrankieFoster3_ reveals how the black market is growing fast _ and why balanced regulation is the best way to keep these rogue operators in check. pic.twitter.com/08zrfgUCm3
— Betting and Gaming Council (@BetGameCouncil) September 4, 2025

The operators of these illegal services don’t pay any tax and the lack of regulation leaves them able to break UK rules of fairness around gaming. The biggest concern, however, is the targeting of vulnerable groups at the greatest risk of gambling-related harm who have already chosen to self-exclude.
Foster demonstrates in the video how easy it is to use the illegal sites, showing how a simple Google search exposes you to illicit sites that appear legitimate.
“Raising taxes on responsible, regulated betting firms will not generate more revenue for the Treasury,” argues the BGC. “Instead, it will drive more customers towards the black market, where there are no protections, no investment in sport and no contribution to the public finances.”
Indeed, previous data from the BGC estimated that 28% of gamblers could turn to illegal betting if taxes were raised.
The cost of black market betting
It’s estimated that black market activity could already be costing the government £335 million ($451 million) in lost revenue over the course of five years. In contrast, the regulated betting industry contributes £6.8 billion ($9.2 billion) in gross value added, £4 billion in taxes, and supports 109,000 jobs across the country.

Illegal gambling is on the rise across Europe, with black market operators capturing over 70% of the continent’s online gambling and casino market. Without balanced regulation, the UK risks the same outcome – more punters driven to unsafe, untaxed sites.https://t.co/7QQGfBV1PO pic.twitter.com/7yLFf1VoRr
— Betting and Gaming Council (@BetGameCouncil) September 3, 2025

The BGC is calling on policymakers to recognise the dangers of driving punters into the hands of unlicensed and unsafe gambling websites, as well as raise awareness amongst the public about what to look out for.
“Get the balance on tax and regulation wrong and you hand a competitive advantage to the black market, where operators pay no tax, contribute nothing to British sport, and offer no safer gambling protections,” said BGC CEO Grainne Hurst. “The black market is growing and actively targeting UK customers. Any tax rise, whether on betting or gaming, makes that offer more attractive and puts more players at risk.”
Featured image: BGC
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PENN Entertainment has revealed the opening date for its second hotel tower at its M Resort in Las Vegas.
Owner of the M Resort Spa Casino Las Vegas, PENN Entertainment, has confirmed the opening date for the second hotel tower at the resort. It’s set to open to the public on Monday, December 1, the final date in the $206 million project. That’s several months earlier than the original timeline.
“We’re thrilled to be unveiling our newest development in Henderson on the heels of our recent grand opening of the new Hollywood Casino Joliet in Illinois,” said Jay Snowden, CEO and President of PENN Entertainment. “This new tower and restaurant from The Emeril Group expands our market-leading amenities at M Resort and provides much-needed additional room capacity for group business and the overall strong demand of the Henderson locals market.”
The second tower brings new businesses to the M Resort
The new hotel tower nearly doubles the capacity of the resort, located south of the Las Vegas Strip, bringing the total number of rooms and suites up to 765. Other expanded features include 15,000 square feet of meeting space, thanks to the Montese Ballroom, due to open on October 1. PENN Entertainment estimates the overall expansion will add 120 new jobs to M Resort’s workforce.
PENN is also partnering with the Emeril Group to bring popular New Orleans’ restaurant Meril to the property. Founded by Chef Emeril Lagasse, this new opening marks the second location of the concept named after Lagasse’s daughter, Meril.
“We can’t wait to begin welcoming more visitors to our market-leading resort,” added Todd George, Executive Vice President, Operations for PENN. “Coupled with our extensive, expanded array of amenities and our highly successful partnership with the Las Vegas Raiders, M Resort is becoming the premier destination for visitors and convention attendees from across the country.”
The new M Resort hotel tower will be the second completed development of PENN’s growth plans, including new land-based casinos in Joliet and Aurora, Illinois, and a new hotel in Columbus, Ohio. This comes after the company reported record-breaking gaming revenue.
Featured image: Flickr, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
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The Finnish National Police Board has fined two influencers €30,000 a piece for marketing gambling in Finland.
Two social media influencers have been prohibited from marketing gambling in Finland by the National Police Board. One ban came into effect in June 2025, while the other has been suspended pending an appeal to the Administrative Court.
The Board’s decision was made because it found that the influencers have considerable financial interests in marketing gambling, leading the Board to intensify compliance via a conditional fine of €30,000 each. Although the fine does not yet have to be paid, if either influencer pursues further gambling marketing, the payment will be enforced.
The Board has already enforced one fine on a third influencer who continued marketing gambling services back in July. All three influencers are said to have engaged in marketing gambling across several channels and for an extended period of time, with particular prevalence on Twitch and Kick streaming services. In all cases, the marketing is being carried out from outside Finland to promote non-Finnish gambling companies.
The bans apply to any content that directly or indirectly markets gambling in Finland, and requires that any existing content must be taken down.
Is gambling marketing illegal in Finland?
The Finnish Lotteries Act states that no online gambling companies that operate in other countries can market their gambling services in the country.
“It seems to be a common misconception that the marketing of gambling in Finland from outside Finland would be allowed,” said Senior Adviser Tomi Sallinen. “However, this is not the case. Only Veikkaus Oy is allowed to market gambling in mainland Finland.”
In this case, the influencers are benefiting via affiliate marketing for the gambling companies, targeting consumers living in Finland as customers. The National Police Board considers such activity as related to commercial co-operation, stating that the influencers have increased the visibility of gambling, gambling websites, and companies serving as intermediaries for gambling through their actions.
Featured image: Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 4.0
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West Ham United midfielder Lucas Paqueta is thinking about taking legal action against the Football Association (FA) after being cleared of spot fixing charges. His legal team is said to be looking at all possible options after an independent commission gave a harsh assessment of the FA’s case.
The 28-year-old Brazilian had been accused of four counts of deliberately picking up yellow cards to influence betting markets. The FA alleged that Paqueta “intentionally sought to receive a card from the referee for the improper purpose of affecting the betting market in order for one or more persons to profit from betting” in matches against Leicester City, Aston Villa, Leeds United and Bournemouth between November 2022 and August 2023. Manchester City had shown interest in signing Paqueta for £80 million before the charges came up.
He denied any wrongdoing and was fully cleared in July 2025. Written reasons released on Wednesday (September 3), reveal how the FA put its case together and explain why the commission decided to reject it.
‘Lack of an independent expert assessment’
At the heart of the FA’s case was betting activity flagged by the International Betting Integrity Association. However, the commission criticized the FA for leaning too heavily on its own investigator instead of bringing in an independent betting expert.

“From the Commission’s perspective the evidence presented by The FA on the betting data had an obvious flaw, namely the lack of an independent expert assessment of that data. That The FA chose to advance the most important element of its case without any such independent expert assessment of it was, in the Commission’s view, surprising.” – The FA vs Lucas Paqueta

“On what The FA have accepted was the most important element of its case, it simply did not call independent expert evidence,” the report stated.
“Accordingly, whilst not Mr Astley’s fault, as he was doing what he had been directed to do, in circumstances where it was clearly and openly accepted by The FA that Mr Astley was not an independent expert, from the Commission’s perspective the evidence presented by The FA on the betting data had an obvious flaw, namely the lack of an independent expert assessment of that data.”
The panel added that there were other explanations for the betting activity that were just as believable: “The betting patterns may have emerged from a rather random passing of perceived ‘hot tips’ or perceived ‘inside information’ within Brazil as much as they may have emerged from a spot-fix.”
The commission also slammed the FA’s use of performance evidence, which it said suffered from “confirmation bias.” It noted that incidents on the pitch were “interpreted in a manner that assumed a guilty explanation when in reality they were at least equally consistent with normal football actions.”
The FA’s case also weakened when phone data analysis, once a key part of their argument, was dismissed after their own experts agreed with the opposing view put forward by Paqueta’s independent analyst. “The FA accept that this evidence… no longer has the evidential value or weight that The FA originally considered it to have,” the commission recorded.
In the end, the panel concluded that the FA had not met the standard of proof needed to support the charges: “The burden remains on The FA throughout to prove the case on the balance of probabilities… We unanimously conclude that The FA cannot discharge the burden upon it.”
Paqueta may be thinking of taking legal action against the FA

FA v Lucas Paquetá – written reasons published: https://t.co/sVhXQOyvJh
The independent Regulatory Commission’s written reasons in the Paquetá case have now been published.
Running to over 300 pages, the decision is understood to be the longest sports-related judgment ever… pic.twitter.com/NSIGmpOagD
— Nick De Marco KC (@nickdemarco_) September 3, 2025

For Paqueta, the decision is a huge relief after spending more than a year under suspicion. His lawyers are now deciding on their next move, with sources telling BBC Sport that they are looking at all options, including possible legal action against the FA for the damage caused by the accusations.
Representing the player, Nick De Marco KC, wrote on X: “Running to over 300 pages, the decision is understood to be the longest sports-related judgment ever issued in the world – a reflection of how serious the case was, the amount of evidence deployed in what was the biggest case in The FA’s history, and one of the most momentous in my own career as a sports lawyer.”
Featured image: Egghead06 / CC. Share Alike 4.0 International
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