Betting on Fair Play: Competition Tribunal Orders Interim Relief to Lottoland in Google Ads Dispute

By: Matthew Freer (African Antitrust)

In this article, author Matthew Freer examines the recent interim relief granted to Lottoland South Africa (Pty) Ltd (“Lottoland”) by The Competition Tribunal (“The Tribunal”) against Google Ireland Limited and Google South Africa (Pty) Ltd (collectively “Google”) on 12 November 2024.

Lottoland, a licensed bookmaker since 7 November 2017 under the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Act, provides fixed-odds betting on various global lotteries, including the South African National Lottery, as well as multiple sporting events. Its competitors include licensed bookmakers such as Hollywood Bets, World Sports Betting, and Betway, among others. Google, a subsidiary of Google LLC, is a multinational technology company specializing in internet-related services and products, particularly its search engine and advertising platform, Google Ads. Google Ads, a core revenue generator for the company, enables businesses to display ads across search results, partner websites, and other platforms using a pay-per-click model, allowing advertisers to bid on keywords to enhance their visibility and attract more customers…

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