Timisoara Bans New Gambling Halls, Existing Venues to Shut by 2027
The Romanian city of Timisoara has voted to ban new gambling halls, with the roughly 173 venues currently licensed in the city expected to close by 2027 as their central Bucharest licences expire.
The local council's unanimous decision, announced by mayor Dominic Fritz, follows a government move earlier this year to hand gambling licensing powers to Romania's local authorities.
Mayor Confirms The Ban
"This decision is now official: gambling halls can no longer be authorised in Timisoara," Fritz said in a statement, adding that the city council had approved a complete ban with a unanimous vote.
Existing venues will keep operating only until their current, centrally issued licences run out, a process the city expects to conclude by 2027.
Lottery products run by Romania's National Lottery are exempt and will remain available in the city, the only form of gambling activity that will continue once the ban takes hold.
Local Authorities Now Hold The Licensing Power
The Timisoara vote follows a decision earlier in 2026 by Romania's national government to devolve gambling licensing decisions to local councils, giving them the power to veto new venues or ban gambling outright in their jurisdiction. It's unsure if this includes online casino gambling.
Timis County Council's president said in April that funding previously tied to gambling hall oversight would be redirected toward schools and kindergarten upgrades.
Romania has been tightening land-based gambling rules since 2024, when it banned slot halls in towns of fewer than 15,000 residents and introduced stricter zoning and advertising requirements. The country's slot machine count has since more than halved, from roughly 80,000 to 36,000.
Casino Games Hub
A Meaningful Slice Of The Market
Brick-and-mortar gambling generated around €1.67 billion in Romania in 2025, roughly a third of the country's total regulated gambling market, according to H2 Gambling Capital data.
Timisoara's move adds to a run of Romanian municipalities restricting land-based venues since local authorities gained the power to do so, and operators with halls in the city now face a hard deadline to plan for closure or relocation.
