France · Competition
Why France cleared Banijay’s purchase of the JOA casino group
France’s competition authority cleared Banijay Gaming’s proposed acquisition of JOA without conditions on 4 November 2026. The case put Betclic’s French online gambling activities alongside a business with 33 physical casinos.
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Natural Earth land outlines and dashed land boundaries.
Pins show commune centres. The authority assessed a group with 33 French casinos.
The deal brought two channels under one owner
Banijay Gaming notified the proposed exclusive acquisition of JOA on 7 October 2026. The authority identified Banijay’s online activity through Betclic and JOA’s physical casino network. JOA also operates restaurants, bars and hotels within casino complexes operated under public service concessions. Source 1
The authority examined the boundaries of each market
The authority found that Lov Group, Banijay’s parent group, had no overlapping activity in the French physical casino market. It considered whether online casinos should affect its review. It described online casinos as prohibited in France and did not judge legalisation sufficiently plausible to build a merger scenario around it. Source 1
Poker was the possible connection between the channels
The authority examined whether online poker and casino table games shared customers. It considered the companies’ market shares, other substantial competitors and the small role of poker in JOA casino activity. On that evidence it found that the deal would not harm competition through linking those neighbouring markets. Source 1
The map shows the geographic footprint behind the review
The authority counted 33 casinos across France. The selected operator listings range from coastal communes such as Fécamp and Antibes to inland communes including Gérardmer and Montrond-les-Bains. The French geographic register supplies commune-centre coordinates. The 4 November decision clears the transaction and does not give a completion date. Source 1 Source 2 Source 3