Mexico to ban land-based slot machines

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has initiated a ban on land-based slot machines in the country. According to the new law, now there should be no devices in both catering establishments and casinos.

But for those 444 casinos that currently exist in the country, the new law will not have direct consequences. The ban will apply to new devices that are being installed now. But casinos will have to get rid of the machines before the license expires.

Thus, slot machines may disappear completely from Mexico in the near future. Under the old law, casinos received licenses for a period of 40 years. But according to the new law, licenses will be valid for up to 25 years, but the right to work with gaming machines will expire.

Let us remember that Obrador’s predecessor, President Felipe Calderon, legalized slot machines during his tenure. And this was confirmed by the Supreme Court. But the current president decided to radically change the situation.

The process to ban the devices was launched last week by Mexico’s Interior Ministry. It published a draft of a new law on games and lotteries. Also, slot machines will be prohibited by current legislation. Only dominoes, chess, billiards, dice, and lotteries are allowed. By the way, Obrador previously stated that casinos received their licenses illegally.