EGBA celebrates European Committee's approval of first-ever standard for identifying gambling harm

The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) has welcomed the positive outcome of the vote on the draft European standard on markers of harm in the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN). An overwhelming majority of national standardisation bodies voted in favour of the standard, representing a significant milestone for player protection in Europe.

Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of EGBA, said: “The positive outcome of this vote is a real testament to the power of collaboration across our sector. When EGBA first proposed this initiative to CEN, we envisioned creating a commonly agreed standard that would benefit players across Europe.

"We’re delighted with the support the standard has received, and I want to personally thank all the stakeholders who participated in this process. The result shows what happens when we work together to strengthen player protection.”

EGBA thanked Dr. Maris Catania, who served as the official project leader, and AFNOR – the French standardisation body – which coordinated the project as its Secretariat in CEN.

The association also thanked all the delegates from national standardisation committees, academics, regulators, operators, and harm prevention experts who contributed their expertise throughout the multi-year collaborative process.

“After years of driving this project, through its conception and development, seeing the overwhelming support it has received is incredibly rewarding,” said Vasiliki Panousi, Senior Manager of EU Affairs at EGBA.

“This will be the first commonly agreed European standard for identifying risky gambling behaviours, and it will offer an essential building block for effective harm prevention in Europe. The cooperation to develop the standard was extremely valuable, bringing together diverse expertise from across the continent.”

The voting process closed on 25 September. While the outcome of the vote is a significant milestone, the standard must now go through the formal CEN finalisation process before it will be published. This process can take several months and includes language translations and other procedural requirements.

The finalisation process is expected to be complete by early 2026. Once published, the standard will be available for voluntary adoption by gambling regulators and operators across Europe.