French Court Finds BWIN Executives Teufelberger and Bodner Innocent

Nanterre court in France found BWIN executives – Norbert Teufelberger, chief executive officer, and Manfred Bodner, former co-chief executive officer – innocent, last week.

They were acquitted for breaking French gambling laws in the period between 2003 and 2005.

The initial charges against BWIN were pressed by La Française des Jeux and Pari-Mutuel Urbain, and they were concerning the company’s sponsorship of a football club, as well as various online gambling activities.

Interestingly, these allegations were dropped, but the authorities continued to insist on punishment, which was estimated at EUR 40,000 per person.

Further details

The two defendants already had history with the French police back in 2006, at the launch of BWIN’s sponsorship for the football team AS Monaco.

In the recent case, the court ruled an oral judgment in favor of the two executives and the prosecution was given ten days to appeal. The written judgment is expected in the near future.

The legal representative of BWIN commented on the gambling news: “Our view of European Union Law has now been confirmed. BWIN violated no laws in France.”