20 Dec, 2021
On December 20, the "Georgian Gambling Association" held a press conference regarding the termination of sponsorship of Georgian sports at the Tbilisi Marriott Hotel.
Athletes and gaming business representatives unanimously noted that if the announced legal restrictions are approved, the gaming business sector will have to refuse sports sponsorship due to increased tax pressure, which will put many types of sports in a very difficult situation and kill development prospects. According to athletes, there is a great chance that many of them will have to give up professional sports.
Levan Saginashvili (world champion in arm wrestling)
"In my opinion, if the gaming business has to leave sports, it will be disastrous for this field. Georgian sports are mainly sponsored by the gaming business, and I can personally say that if these strict regulations are adopted, I will either have to leave sports or leave the country, because I have no other stable income. I appeal to everyone to take into account the requests of athletes and pass such a law that prevents sports and the interest of the gambling business in financing this field."
Lasha Talakhadze (Olympic and world champion in weightlifting)
"It will be a very sad fact if any athlete or club is left without funding. Personally, I feel supported by the gaming business, success is more appreciated and I don't want successful athletes to be left without funding. Maybe in such a situation, some athletes will have to leave Georgia."
Konstantine Janashia (strongman, European and world record holder)
"Any help for athletes is very important. It allows us to train properly and perform well at competitions. Of course, there should be regulations, but the decision made should not result in a cutoff of funding for athletes. In this case, we will be in a very bad situation. I hope they will adopt such regulations that the game Businesses will be left with the resources to finance sports."
Nino Odzelashvili (world and European champion in sambo)
"Athletes who have the title of world champion and great success receive a salary, but not as much as all athletes deserve. The gaming business stood next to sports, and without funding, Georgian sports cannot exist."
Raul Tutarauli (MMA champion of Georgia, 28-6-0)
"If the gaming business is no longer able to finance sports, we will face big problems and it will be difficult for us to think about future plans. In Georgia, sports are not valued and the gaming business is not only MMA, but many other sports are standing next to us."
Giorgi Mamulaishvili (Administrative Head of Georgian Gambling Association)
"Business will no longer have the opportunity to make large investments in various fields. We have financed both beginners and successful athletes who represent Georgia and represent the country. The purpose of this move from our side is not to put pressure, but it is one of the means of optimization, so that companies do not exist in the Georgian market. Stop it. The adoption of this law will not only harm one specific area, but also the population. People who want to play will go to the illegal market, and no one should have the illusion that this will change anything for the better. We have examples from neighboring countries, what the results of prohibitions have been and the level of crime that has increased. All states have understood , that taking this step is harmful. The USA, Ukraine, Belarus - have moved from prohibitions to concessions, and we are, in fact, harming the white market."
Recently, the general secretary of the SFF, Davit Mujir, expressed his opinion on the air of "Imedi" TV company, who stated that the football federation does not receive a single lar from the country's budget thanks to the gaming business: "Attracting partners has resulted in the football federation reducing the funding it receives from the state every year." And in 2021, we became an organization that does not receive anything from the state, we reduced 7 million to 0, and on the contrary, we pay money into the budget, and I really don't want to go back to the past."
We remind you that on December 13, a draft law was submitted to the Parliament of Georgia on the introduction of new regulations for gaming business. The mentioned regulations envisage a significant (up to 70%) increase in the tax burden for gaming businesses, a complete ban on advertising (except for sponsorship), and an increase in the minimum age limit for players to 25 years. The gambling business believes that the expected regulations will put the companies employed in the gaming business sector under the most severe pressure, which will automatically lead to the need to optimize costs and make it impossible to invest in the development of Georgian sports.
