The government is not done with pressing invitations to make greater use of taxes levied on sports betting to finance sport. After the deputies, the senators should put the subject back on the table, at the beginning of December, during the examination of the appropriations for the Sports mission appearing in the finance bill for 2024.
Wednesday, November 15, by presenting his report for opinion on behalf of the Committee on Culture, Education and Communication, Jean-Jacques Lozach (Socialist Party) announced that he will table an amendment aimed at increasing the amounts resulting of these taxes which are intended for the National Sports Agency (ANS), the operational arm of the State for public policies in matters of sport.
In the draft budget for 2024, the ANS should benefit from 270.9 million euros in credits paid by the State (compared to 264.6 million in 2023), to which will be added 166.1 million euros of assigned taxes and 10 million euros of own resources. The amount of these assigned taxes will thus remain constant compared to 2023: 34.6 million euros will come from the total sums collected by the State (i.e. 181.7 million) from online sports betting, and 71.8 million of the total sums taken from bets (i.e. more than 246 million). Furthermore, the “Buffet tax”, collected on television broadcast rights, also remains stable (59.7 million).
“Regarding the levy on online sports betting, removing the cap would release 147 million euros,” argued Mr. Lozach, estimating that this could, for example, make it possible to finance the renovation of so-called structuring sports equipment (swimming pools, gymnasiums, etc.), “which really need it given their dilapidated state, particularly the swimming pools”.
This is also what we are campaigning for the National Association of Elected Officials in Charge of Sport (Andes), which is calling for a program of 500 million euros per year, particularly aimed at the renovation and construction of these structuring infrastructures.
During the hearing of the Minister of Sports and the Olympic and Paralympic Games (JOP), Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, on October 25, Senator Michel Savin (Les Républicains) also considered that “the share on sports betting” who goes to the ANS, “which is only 19%”, should be increased “at least 33%”.
“We were not penalized by the cap”
“This measure would make sense for next year, in the context of sport being declared a “great national cause”, especially since the Olympic and Paralympic Games and Euro football will probably boost sports betting”added Mr. Lozach.
The government has refused, at this stage, to any modification for the year 2024. Even if an amendment raising the levies on sports betting was adopted by the deputies, it was not integrated into the version of the text of the bill for the part relating to revenue, adopted on October 18 after recourse to article 49.3.
“We were not penalized by the capping mechanism” assigned taxes, Ms. Oudéa-Castéra explained on several occasions: “The three taxes concerned represented a little less than 70 million euros [de recettes pour l’ANS] cumulatively between 2020 and 2024, while, at the same time, the ministry’s credits recorded an increase of 350 million cumulatively [hors crédits liés aux Jeux], that is to say five times higher dynamics. »
However, the Minister of Sports and JOPs declared, before the senators on October 25, that she “ [n’écartait] not at all a discussion for the future » on a greater use of these taxes on sports betting. “There is a very important principle – which was pursued with the Buffet tax and which must be pursued with the tax on sports betting – which is that sport finances sport. We [sommes] there [en] ability [d’]go and get additional reserves of credits »she declared.