The European Court of Justice held a hearing on 29 April 2008 on Bwin and the Portuguese Football League's challenge to the gambling monopoly held by Portugal's Santa Casa da Misericórdia. The two parties clashed over whether Portugal's restrictive gambling policy could be justified by the public order interests cited by the Portuguese government.

Following the Italian Economy Ministry's submission of its draft online gambling law to the European Commission and the Member States at the beginning of the year, the European Commission responded on the 29 April with its own detailed comments to the Italian government highlighting several things it dislikes in the text. The Italian decree had to be notified to the European Commission and the Member States according to the provisions of Directive 98/34/EC. Malta has been the most critical of the Member States to respond.

Following announcements of Budgetminister Woerth earlier this month and Primeminister Fillon on the 24 April France wants to change outdated gambling laws and proposes an "ouverture maîtrisée" (controlled opening) and regulation of the market. Observers believe that France will get ready to comply with the European Commission's Reasoned Opinion, demanding the opening of France's sports betting market to private competition, in order to draw a line under the European infringement proceedings before it assumes the EU presidency in July 2008.  

On 17 April 2008, the first conference on responsible gaming took place in the European Parliament. The online gambling industry believes that the services it supplies are a service like any other and, with the growth of the Internet, it wants a European market with a stable legal framework that protects consumers. It was argued that in an obvious contradictory interest, Member State governments and public gambling monopolies are jealously guarding their tax income and are hostile to the arrival of cross-border service suppliers competing with the traditional operators.