THE SUPREME COURT OF APPEAL OF SOUTH AFRICA
JUDGMENT
Reportable
Case no: 182/2024

In the matter between:
PORTAPA (PTY) LIMITED T/A SUPABETS FIRST APPELLANT
SUPAWORLD GAUTENG (PTY) LTD SECOND APPELLANT
INTELLIGENT GAMING (PTY) LTD THIRD APPELLANT
and
CASINO ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA FIRST RESPONDENT
THE GAUTENG GAMBLING BOARD SECOND RESPONDENT
and
Case no: 215/2024
THE GAUTENG GAMBLING BOARD APPELLANT
and
CASINO ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA FIRST RESPONDENT
PORTAPA (PTY) LTD T/A SUPABETS SECOND RESPONDENT
SUPAWORLD GAUTENG (PTY) LTD THIRD RESPONDENT
INTELLIGENT GAMING (PTY) LTD FOURTH RESPONDENT

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Neutral citation: Portapa (Pty) Limited t/a Supabets and Others v Casino
Association of South Africa and Another, and
The Gauteng Gambling Board v Casino Association of South
Africa v Portaba (Pty) Ltd t/a Supabets and Others (182/2024
& 215/2024) [2025] ZASCA 158 (21 October 2025)
Coram: DAMBUZA, MOTHLE and KOEN JJA
Heard: 26 August 2025
Delivered: This judgment was handed down electronically by circulation
to the parties’ representatives by email, publication on the
Supreme Court of Appeal website and released to SAFLII.
The date for hand -down of the judgment is deemed to be
11h00 on 21 October 2025.
Summary: Gambling Laws: Interpretation of ‘sporting event’ in s 55 of
the Gauteng Gambling Act 4 of 1995 – limiting fixed-odds bets with bookmakers
to ‘sporting events’ not in conflict with the provisions of s 4 of the National
Gambling Act 7 of 2004 – ‘sporting events’ not including roulette games.

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ORDER

On appeal from: Gauteng Division of the High Court, Johannesburg:
(Crutchfield J, sitting as a court of first instance):
1 The appeal in case number 215/2024 is dismissed with costs including the costs
of two counsel where employed.
2 The ‘cross-appeal’ in case number 182/2024 is upheld with costs including the
costs of two counsel where employed.
3 The order of the high court giving rise to the cross-appeal in case number
182/2024 is set aside and replaced with the following:
‘1. It is declared that it is unlawful, in terms of the Gauteng Gambling Act 4
of 1995 , for bookmakers to offer fixed -odds bets on the outcome of a casino
game, including the game of roulette.
2 It is declared that:
2.1 The second respondent (Supabets) is not permitted to offer fixed-odds bets
on the game of roulette;
2.2 The second respondent’s conduct in offering fixed -odds bets on the
outcome of roulette is unlawful and contravenes s 76(2) of the Gauteng Gambling
Act 4 of 1995;
3 The decision of the first respondent as contained in its letter dated 2 March
2018 is reviewed and set aside insofar as it finds that the second respondent did
not act contrary to the provisions of ss 39 and 76 of the Gauteng Gambling Act 4
of 1995;
4 The first and second respondents, jointly and severally, are directed to pay the
costs of the application, including the costs of two counsel where employed.’

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JUDGMENT

Dambuza JA (Mothle and Koen JJA concurring)

[1] The issue in this appeal is whether bookmakers that are licenced as such
under the Gauteng Gambling Act 4 of 1995 (the Gauteng Act) may offer fixed-
odds bets on the outcomes of roulette games. The Gauteng Division of the High
Court, Johannesburg, per Crutchfield J (the high court), held that because roulette
is a casino game and not a sporting event , bookmakers in the Gauteng Province
may not offer betting on outcomes of live roulette games.

[2] The background against which the dispute arises is the following. The
second respondent, the Gauteng Gambling Board (the Board), is a statutory body
established in terms of s 3 of the Gauteng Act. Its powers and functions are set
out in s 4 of that Act. They include overseeing and controlling gambling activities
within the Gauteng Province, advising the relevant Member of the Executive in
the province on matters relating to granting of gambling licences, and regulating
gambling within the province. It has exclusive jurisdiction to investigate, consider
and issue gambling licences within the Gauteng Province.1

[3] On 9 January 2017 , the Board approved the use of the Aardvark betting
software in the Gauteng Province. The software is owned by the third appellant,
Intelligent Gaming (Pty) Ltd (Intelligent Gaming). It enables bookmakers to offer
and accept wagers to and from punters on the outcome of sports and lottery draw
events and the electronic capturing of bets.

1 In terms of s 30(a)(i) of the National Gambling Act 7 of 2004.

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[4] On 11 April 2017 , the Board approved Intelligent Gaming’s request to
offer on the Aardvark software, livestream feeds of roulette draw contingencies2
to existing holders of bookmaker licences in Gauteng. On 14 June 2017 the first
appellant, Portapa (Pty) Ltd, a licenced bookmaker which trades as Supabets
(Supabets), made an application to the Board to install the Aa rdvark betting
software at its betting shops in Gauteng. The Board gave a conditional approval
to this application in terms of regulation 266 of the Gauteng Gambling
Regulations published under the Gauteng Act on 20 June 2017. 3 One of the
conditions was that the approval could only be implemented once consent to all
the contingencies and bet types were secured.

[5] Despite not having obtained the required consent for all contingencies and
bet types, on 23 June 2017 Supabets began to offer fixed-odd bets dependant on
streamed, live roulette contingenc ies. On 19 September 2017 , the Board
addressed a letter to all licenced bookmakers advising that the installation and
upgrading of all gambling software could only be effected with its approval. It
stressed that installations of the Aardvark system without its prior approval was
unlawful conduct under Regulation 266 and Rule 14.080 of the Gauteng
Gambling Rules and Regulations.


2In the National Gambling Act , a contingency is defined in s 1 as an event the outcome of which is uncertain or
unknown to any person until it happens.
3 The conditions attached to the approval were the following:
• ‘The system Internal Control Procedures must be submitted prior to the inspection date.
• The procedure must include IT controls for the system and access matrix of the operations including controls
of the passwords.
• The penetration and vulnerability test report should be submitted to the Board before 25 th August 2017.
• The GGB approval 10199 may only be implemented on condition that the operator obtains approval for all

contingencies and bet types prior to implementation.
• The G auteng Gambling Board approval 10199 is subject to Aardvark Technologies Limited successfully
complying with licencing requirements and licence being issued within 12 months. Failing which the approval
will expire’.

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[6] At this stage the first respondent, the Casino Association of South Africa
(CASA), a voluntary association whose members are casino licence holders in
South Africa, became aware that Supabets was offering fixed -odd bets on the
outcome of livestreamed roulette. It lodged a complaint with the Board in respect
of the conduct of the Supabets , asserting that in terms of the Gauteng Act,
bookmakers who operate in the Gauteng Province require a casino licence in
order to offer bets on roulette games , because roulette is a casino game . CASA
urged the Board to take immediate steps to stop the offending conduct.

[7] On 29 November 2017, the second appellant, Supaworld Gauteng (Pty) Ltd
(Supaworld) applied to the Board to offer fixed -odd bets on roulette games as
contingencies on the Aardvark system. When it submitted this application, it was
already offering the bets. It continued to do so while waiting for a response from
the Board.

[8] By March 2018, the Board had still not responded to CASA’s complaint.
Correspondence from CASA to the Board , following up on the complaint , was
met with the response that the Board was investigating the matter. On 9 March
2018, CASA approached the high court seeking a declarator : that it is unlawful
for anyone, other than a holder of a casino licence, to offer fixed-odds bets on the
outcome of a casino game, including the roulette game ; that Supabets was not
authorised and/or licenced to offer fixed-odd bets on the outcome of roulette; and
that its conduct in doing so was unlawful. It also sought interdictory relief
stopping Supabets (the first respondent in that application) from offering bets on
outcomes of roulette games. It sought, in the alternative, that the Board (the
second respondent in that application) be ordered to complete its investigations
into its complaint within 60 days of the order that would be granted . The
interdictory relief against Supabets, if granted, would endure pending the Board’s
decision.

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[9] Three days after the launch of the high court application, the Board advised
CASA of its decision on the complaint. Its decision, taken on 2 March 2018, was
that Supabets had not acted unlawfully , but had merely ‘introduced a new
contingency (betting on the outcome of roulette games) without the prior approval
of the Board’. This conduct did not contravene the provisions of ss 39 and 764 of
the Gauteng Act as CASA had alleged, said the Board.

[10] Pursuant to the Board’s response, CASA amended its Notice of Motion to
seek a review of the Board’s decision that Supabets had not acted unlawfully. It
persisted in its prayer for a declarator that it was unlawful for persons other than
casino licence holders to offer fixed-odds bets on the outcomes of casino games,
including roulette and that Supabets was not entitled to offer fixed -odd bets on
that contingency without a casino licence.

[11] On 29 June 2018, the Board approved Supaworld’s request to offer fixed-
odds bets on outcomes of roullete games , using the Aardvark system. On
10 July 2018, Supabets also applied to offer fixed -odds bets on outcomes of
roulette games on the Aardvark system. Three days after that application was
made, on 13 July 2018, the Board approved it.

[12] CASA became aware of the approval decisions of the Board . This
information was contained in correspondence from Supabets’ legal
representatives dated 15 August 2018. In October 2018, CASA launched a second

4 Section 39(1) of the Gauteng Act provides that: ‘no person shall conduct a casino without a casino licence’. And
s 76 (1) of the same Act regulates the contingencies on which gambling may take place. It provides :
‘76 Events and contingencies on which gambling may take place
(1) No person shall gamble on the result of any event or contingency other than –
(a) a casino game;
(b) a bingo game;
(c) the operation of a gaming machine; or
(d) . . .
(e) a sporting event’

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application in the high court for a review of the approval decisions taken by the
Board on 29 June, 13 July 2018, and on 20 June 2017. In that application CASA
maintained that the approvals granted to Intelligent Gaming were part of a
broader scheme in which Supabets and Supaworld (the Supabets entities) would
secure approvals to offer fixed-odd bets on roulette games as contingencies, using
the Aadvark system to livestream roulette games. It sought orders that the
decisions permitting the Supabets entities to install and use the Aadvark system
at their premises and to offer bets on roulette, be reviewed.

[13] In the second application CASA contended that the approval decisions
were unlawful, exposed it to unlawful competition and exposed members of the
public to unlawful unregulated gambling. It argued that the decisions taken by the
Board were premised on material errors of law, were not authorised by the
empowering provision, resulted from a failure to take into account relevant
considerations, and did not comply with mandatory legislative provisions,
resulting in procedural unfairness. In essence , CASA’s case centred around
roulette being a casino game and the approvals having been made in
contravention of ss 76(3) and 87 of the Gauteng Act which required the Supabets
entities to be in possession of casino licences, in order to offer and/or accept bets
on roulette games.

[14] The high court dismissed the first review application and granted the
second one. It found that once CASA issued the second review, it should have
abandoned the first one. In granting the second review, it set aside the approvals
that had been granted by the Board. In this appeal the Board and Supabets entities’
appeal against the decision of the high court, while CASA cross-appeals against
the dismissal of the first review. Both the appeal and cross -appeal are with the
leave of this Court.

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[15] The appeal stands on two legs. First , the Board and the Supabet s entities
argue that there is a conflict between the provisions of the National Gambling
Act 7 of 2004 (the National Gambling Act) and the Gauteng Act, with regard to
the scope of bookmakers’ contingencies. This, the argument goes, is because the
National Gambling Act authorises bookmakers to accept bets on any contingency,
while the Gauteng Act limits bookmakers to accepting bets only on sporting
activities. The appellants contend that this restriction is improper and that the
National Gambling Act should prevail . The second leg of the appeal is that
‘sporting event’ in the definition of the contingency in respect of which
bookmakers may accept bets under the Gauteng Act , must be given a wide
interpretation to include the offering and accepting of fixed-odd bets on roulette.

[16] CASA maintains that there is no conflict between the national and
provincial gambling legislations. It argues that the wide interpretation advanced
by the appellants is not sustainable on a correct interpretation of the definition of
‘sporting event’ provided in the Gauteng Act. Furthermore, CASA argues that the
relief sought in its first review is different from that sought in the second.
Consequently, t he high court should not have dismissed its first review
application.

[17] I consider first the question whether there is a conflict between the relevant
provisions of the national and provincial Gambling Acts. The relevant provision
in the National Gambling Act is s 4(1), which provides:
‘4. Bets and wagers-
(1) A person places or accepts a bet or wager when that person-
(a) Being a player, stakes money or anything of value on a fixed -odds bet or an open bet,
with a bookmaker on any contingency; or
(b) Being a bookmaker-
(i) accepts a stake of money or anything of value on a fixed -odds bet, or an open
bet, from a player on any contingency; or

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(ii) stakes money or anything of value on a fixed -odds bet, or an open bet, with
another bookmaker on any contingency;
(c) stakes or accepts a stake of money or anything of value with one or more other persons
on any contingency; or
(d) expressly or implicitly undertakes, promises or agrees to do anything contemplated in
paragraph (a), (b) or (c).’ (emphasis supplied)

[18] Section 55 of the Gauteng Act, on the other hand, provides that:
‘A bookmaker’s licence shall, subject to any condition imposed under section 32, authorise the
accepting, on the licenced premises concerned of fixed odds bets on sporting events ’.
(emphasis supplied)
The conflict, according to the Board and the Supabets entities, arises from the
limitation of the contingency on which bets can be offered under the Gauteng
Act, to ‘sporting events’, while the National Gambling Act allows fixed -odds
betting on ‘any contingency’. They contend that this Court should find that there
is a conflict between the two statutes and , for that reason, interpret ‘sporting
event’ in s 55 of the Gauteng Act broadly, to mean ‘any contingency’.

[19] The issue requires a correct understanding of the interrelationship between
the National Gambling Act and the provincial gambling statutes. In terms of the
Constitution, gambling is a concurrent legislative competence of national
government and the provinces.5 The conclusion by the high court, that the content
and ambit of the national and provincial statutes fulfil different roles, is correct.
Each province has its own gambling legislation and related rules and regulations.
Generally, these must be consistent with the National Gambling Act on issues on
which the National Gambling Act has primary competence. However, e ach
province within the country has its own peculiarities and restrictions. It is for this

5 Section 146 of the Constitution read with Schedule 4 to the Constitution.

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reason that t he Constitutional Court has held that inconsistences between the
National and Provincial gambling legislation are not unconstitutional.

[20] In Weare and another v Ndebele N O and others 6 (Weare) the
Constitutional Court considered whether s 22(5) of the Kwazulu -Natal
Regulation of Racing and Betting Ordinance 28 of 1957 (the Ordinance)
constituted an irrational and arbitrary differentiation , contrary to the provisions
of s 9 of the Constitution, for prohibiting juristic persons from holding bookmaker
licences. In other provinces juristic persons were allowed to hold such licences.
The applicants in that Court argued that the restriction of bookmaker licences to
natural persons had become outdated, was no longer rationally linked to the goal
of regulation , and served no legitimate government purpose. In rejecting that
argument, the Constitutional Court held that the applicants had not shown that the
policy choice made by the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature fell outside the
bounds of legitimate legislative choice. It held that the provincial legislature of
Kwazulu-Natal had the prerogative of selecting the means to achieve the
objectives of its government.7 The Court held that:
‘Provinces have the right to regulate their own gambling industries. There can be no objection
in this case to the KwaZulu-Natal legislative regime simply on the ground that it is different to
that in other provinces. This is not to say that the situation i n other provinces may not be
referred to when challenging provincial legislation. But the fact that there are differences
between the legal regimes in provinces does not in itself constitute a breach of section 9(1).8

[21] The national and provincial gambling statutes are complementary. They
represent the national and provincial gambling policy framework. As the
Constitutional Court held in Weare, the policy choice exercised by the Gauteng

Constitutional Court held in Weare, the policy choice exercised by the Gauteng

6 Weare and another v Ndebele N O and others [2008] ZACC 20; 2009 (1) SA 600 (CC); 2009 (4) BCLR 370
(CC).
7 Para 58.
8 Para 70.

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Provincial Legislature in this case, in restricting the contingency on which
bookmakers may accept or offer bets , could only be validly challenged if it
exceeded the bounds of legitimate legislative choice. T he appellants made no
such case.

[22] Furthermore, there is no conflict between the national and provincial
statutes in this instance. In the relevant part, s 146 of the Constitution provides:
‘146 Conflicts between national and provincial legislation
(1) This section applies to a conflict between national and provincial legislation falling
within a functional area listed in Schedule 4.
(2) National legislation that applies uniformly with regard to the country as a whole prevails
over provincial legislation if any of the following conditions is met:
(a) The national legislation deals with a matter that cannot be regulated effectively by
legislation enacted by the respective provinces individually.
(b) The national legislation deals with a matter that , to be dealt with effectively, requires
uniformity across the nation , and the national legislation provides that uniformity by
establishing-
(i) norms and standards
(ii) frameworks; or
(iii) national policies
(c) . . .
(3) national legislation prevails over provincial legislation if the national legislation is aimed
at preventing unreasonable legislation by the province that-
(a) is prejudicial to economic, health or security interests of another province or the
country as a whole; or
(b) impedes the implementation of national economic policy.
. . .
(4) Provincial legislation prevails over national legislation if subsection (2) or (3) does not
apply’

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[23] Casinos, racing, gambling and wagering are listed in Schedule 4 to the
Constitution as matters of concurrent national and provincial legislative
competence, with the National Gambling Act establishing the framework for
regulation and co-ordination of gambling activities.9 The National Gambling Act
establishes norms and standards which apply generally th roughout the country
with regard to casinos, racing, gambling and wagering. The norms and standards
guide the National Gambling Board in the exercise of its exclusive competence -
the oversight role over the provincial authorities , particularly the monitoring of
compliance with the provisions of the National Gambling Act.

[24] In terms of s 30(1)(a)(i) of the National Gambling Act, provincial licencing
authorities have exclusive jurisdiction within their individual provinces, to
investigate and consider applications for, and issue provincial licences. To this
extent, as the Supabets entities contend, provincial gambling legislation controls
gambling within provinces, and ensure s that the industry contributes to the
provincial economies, adheres to local and national standards, and addresses the
social impacts of gambling within the provinces. The regionalisation of gambling
regulation provides room to satisfy the unique demographic, economic and social
factors in the different provinces. Within this context provincial regulatory
authorities regulate the different gambling licencing modes. There is no evidence
that, in the gambling industry, the National Gambling Act fulfil s any of the
conditions set out in s 146 (2) or (3) of the Constitution. Provincial legislation
therefore prevails.

[25] In addition, the National Gambling Act and the Gauteng Act can be read
harmoniously. As counsel for CASA submitted, s 4 of the National Gambling Act
is not a contingency prescription provision. It merely describes how bets and

9 See the preamble to the National Gambling Act.

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wagers are made and/or accepted. This is plain from the text of the provision.
Regarding bookmakers, s 4(b) provides that a bet or a wager is made when a
bookmaker accepts a stake of money or anything of value on a fixed-odds bet, or
an open bet, from a player on any contingency for which they are licenced. The
broadly framed text in s 4 of the National Gambling Act text provides flexibility
to cover any contingency that the individual provincial legislative authorities may
choose to provide. There is therefore no conflict between s 4(b) of the National
Gambling Act and s 55 of the Gauteng Act.

[26] The next issue to be determined is whether roulette is a sporting event on
which bookmakers may accept bets, as envisaged in s 55 of the Gauteng Act. To
recap, s 55 stipulates that a bookmaker’s licence shall authorise the accepting of
fixed-odds bets on sporting events. ‘Sporting event’ is defined in the Gauteng Act
as:
‘any ball -game, race (including a race involving vehicles or animals) or other athletic or
sporting contest, competition or game, including a beauty contest, usually attended by the
public’.
The Supabets entities contend that roulette is a game and is therefore included in
the definition of a sporting event. The y argue that ‘game’ , in the definition of
sporting event, should be interpreted broadly, in line with the development of the
concept of electronic games in the gambling industry and also so as to be
consistent with s 22 of the Constitution — the right to freedom of trade,
occupation and profession . They discount CASA’s interpretation as unduly
restrictive and stagnant because of its focus on a ‘physical sporting encounter’.
The argument is that the ‘game’ should be interpreted broadly so as to make
gambling accessible , in conformity with the objects of gambling legislation.
CASA insists that on a plain reading of the text of the definition of ‘sporting
event’, the adjectives ‘athletic or sporting’ describe contest, competition or game.

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Therefore, contest, competition or game must be an athletic sporting event
(excluding beauty contests).

[27] Insofar as the argument for a broad , constitutionally compliant
interpretation of ‘game’ is concerned, the appellants’ argument is unsustainable.
I have concluded that the national statute does not prevail over the provincial
legislation and that s 4 of the National Gambling Act and s 55 of the Gauteng Act
must be read harmoniously. F idelity must therefore be accorded to the text and
purpose of s 55 of the Gauteng Act and the relevant definitions. The broad
interpretation advanced by the Supabets entities disregard s this well-established
principle of interpretation of legal documents.

[28] A sensible reading of ‘sporting event’ in s 1 of the Gauteng Act , is that it
is: either a ball-game, or a race (including a race involving vehicles or animals),
or other athletic or sporting contest, athletic or sporting competition or athletic
or sporting game, including a beauty contest, usually attended by the public. The
phrase ‘other athletic or sporting’ describes the contest, competition or game.
‘Game’ is not a stand -alone noun. It is qualified by the words ‘sporting or
athletic’, such that the complete expression is an ‘athletic or sporting game’. The
high court was correct in its conclusion that roulette is not a game as envisaged
in the definition of ‘sporting activity’ in the Gauteng Act. It is also relevant that
roulette is not a game that is usually attended by the public.

[29] Nothing prevents bookmakers from using technology or electronic means
to provide betting and wagering facilities within their defined scope of
contingency. The fact that provincial legislatures in other regions permit
bookmakers in those regions to offer or accept fixed -odds bets on any
contingency, is not a proper basis for the interpretation that the Board and the
Supabets entities propose. Section 55 of the Gauteng Act and the relevant

16

definitions were enacted to ensure that that gambling activities in the Gauteng
Province are effectively regulated, taking into account the unique socio-economic
circumstances and demographics of that province.

[30] A further significant factor is that roulette is a casino game and should be
played in a casino. This is apparent from the following definitions in s 1 of the
Gauteng Act. Casino game is defined as:
‘ . . . any game, irrespective of whether or not the result thereof is determined by chance or a
measure of skill, played with playing cards, dice a gaming machine or any other device used
to determine win or loss in the outcome of a wager for money or other valuable consideration,
and includes, without derogating from the generality of the foregoing, chemin de fer, baccarat,
bingo, keno, twenty-one, poker and roulette, or any other game whose rules closely resemble
that of the foregoing’.(emphasis added).
Being a casino game, roulette must be played in casino premises. In s 1 of the
Gauteng Act ‘casino’ is defined as ‘premises where casino games are played or
available to be played for money or other valuable consideration gambled on the
possibility of winning a prize’.

[31] The Gauteng Act is a carefully constructed scheme for regulating gambling
within the Gauteng Province. It is intended to limit the right to freedom of trade
within the gambling industry . There is no constitutional challenge to any of the
provisions of the Gauteng Act. Section 76 of that Act stipulates events and
contingencies on which gambling may take place. It provides:
‘(1) No person may gamble on the result of any event or contingency other than-
(a) a casino game;
(b) a bingo game;
(c) the operating of a gaming machine; or
(d) . . .
(e) A sporting event.’

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(2) No person may gamble on the result of any event or contingency contemplate d in
subsection (1) with any person other than the holder of a licence who is authenticated by such
licence to gamble on the event or contingency concerned.’

[32] Licences in relation to each of the contingencies set out in s 76(1) are
regulated in Chapters 4 to 11 (excluding Chapter 7)10 of the Gauteng Act. Chapter
4 deals with casino licences, and chapter 5 deals with Bingo, Gaming machine,
and additional gaming machine licences. Route operator licences are regulated in
Chapter 6, Totalizator and pool licences are provided for in Chapter 8, and
Chapter 9 regulates bookmaker licences. Section 39 in Chapter 9 prohibits the
conduct of a casino without a casino licence. It mirrors similar prohibitions in
Chapters 4 to 8. The case advanced by the Board and the Supabets entities seeks
to dismantle this deliberate construct in the Act and to allow bookmakers to ride
on the coattails of licencees under all these Chapters , without the required
licences.

[33] The fact that the Supabets entities currently offer bets on roulette games
streamed from Lithuania illustrates this point. Whereas, in South Africa, roulette
games must be offered in licenced casinos, the Board has no control over roulette
streamed from Lithuania, or anywhere else outside the Gauteng Province. This is
at odds with the objectives of the Gauteng Act.

[34] The fact that the Lithuanian casino from which the roulette games are
streamed may be in possession of a licence as required under the laws of that
country, as the Supabets entities argued, is irrelevant. For entities conducting
gambling businesses in Gauteng, the requirement of a casino licence in order to
offer roulette games, means a Gauteng casino licence. As submitted on behalf of
CASA the gambling occurs in Gauteng. Without a Gauteng casino licence, the

10 Chapter 7, which dealt with Lotteries was repealed in 1996.

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Supabets entities are conducting a gambling activity without the necessary
licence, which is prohibited under s 7 (a) of the National Gambling Act. That
section prohibits the conduct of gambling activity if the outcome of that activity
depends directly or indirectly, partly or entirely on a contingency related to an
event or activity that is itself unlawful.

[35] The final issue to consider is whether CASA ought to have discontinued
its first review once it issued the second review application. I do not think so.
Indeed, CASA sought a declarator that the conduct of accepting bets dependent
on the outcome of roulette as a contingency, without a licence, was unlawful. The
first review was a challenge to this conduct in general, and in particular to
Supabets’ engagement in it, and, importantly, the Board’s decision dismissing the
complaint on the grounds that Supabets did not engage in unlawful conduct.
CASA also sought an interdict to stop the conduct. The second review related to
the approval decisions.

[36] It is true that the approval decisions intervened to legitimise the previously
unlawful conduct by Supabets. But this does not detract from fact that Supabets’
unlawful conduct extended beyond accepting bets on the outcome of roulette
without a licence to offer that contingency. The unlawfulness of that conduct and
the dismissal of CASA’s related complaint are beyond dispute . Against this
background in the first review CASA sought orders that: Supabets’ conduct, in
offering bets on the outcome of roulette without a casino licence, be reviewed and
declared unlawful, the Board complete its investigation into the complaint
lodged, and that pending the finalisation of that (first) review, Supabets be
interdicted from offering roulette as a contingency on which fixed-odd bets could
be offered.

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[37] The w ithdrawal of the first application would leave intact the Board’s
decision that Supabets’ conduct in offering bets on the outcome of a roulette prior
to the Board’s approval was lawful. Therefore, although the underlying questions
of law were the same in both applications, the second review did not subsume all
the issues in the first review. Only the prayers for a mandamus for finalisation of
the complaint investigation fell away. The review of the Board’s decision on the
lawfulness of Supabets ’ conduct in offering the bets prior to the approvals and
the general declarator , remained live issues. CASA was therefore entitled to
proceed with both applications, although the declarators it sought in the first
application in relation to the conduct of the Superbets entities specifically, were
subsumed by the challenge to the approval decisions in the second review.

[38] The following order is therefore issued:
1 The appeal in case number 215/2024 is dismissed with costs including the costs
of two counsel where employed.
2 The ‘cross-appeal’ in case number 182/2024 is upheld with costs including the
costs of two counsel where employed.
3 The order of the high court giving rise to the appeal in in case number 182/2024
is set aside and replaced with the following:
‘1. It is declared that it is unlawful, in terms of the Gauteng Gambling Act 4
of 1995, for bookmakers to offer fixed -odds bets on the outcome of a casino
game, including the game of roulette.
2 It is declared that:
2.1 The second respondent (Supabets) is not permitted to offer fixed-odds bets
on the game of roulette;
2.2 The second respondent’s conduct in offering fixed -odds bets on the
outcome of roulette is unlawful and contravenes s 76(2) of the Gauteng Gambling
Act 4 of 1995;

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3 The decision of the first respondent as contained in its letter dated 2March 2018
is reviewed and set aside insofar as it finds that the second respondent did not act
contrary to the provisions of ss 39 and 76 of the Gauteng Gambling Act 4 of 1995;
4 The first and second respondents, jointly and severally, are directed to pay
the costs of the application, including the costs of two counsel where employed.’


___________________

N DAMBUZA
JUDGE OF APPEAL

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Appearances

For the appellant in case
number 182/2024: B Roux SC
Instructed by: Michael Werner Attorney,
E G Cooper Majiedt Inc, Bloemfontein

For the appellant in case
number 215/2024: JG Rautenbach SC
Instructed by: Motlatsi Seleke Attorneys,
Symington De Kok Inc, Bloemfontein

For the first respondent in both
case numbers 182 and 215/2024 N Ferreira with B Mtukushe
Instructed by: Edward Nathan Sonnenberg
Lovius Block Inc, Bloemfontein.