UK-listed gambling operator GVC Holdings’ Ladbrokes brand is being investigated by the European Union for unfairly monopolizing virtual betting in Belgium.

On Wednesday, the European Commission (EC) said it had launched a probe into Belgium’s decision to award GVC’s Belgian subsidiaries the right to operate both land-based and online virtual sports betting while denying that right to other operators.

The Derby SA subsidiary got the nod for retail virtual bets via digital kiosks at its 300+ local shops in February 2014, while online virtual permission was granted in March 2015. The EC said it received complaints in March 2019 from two of Ladbrokes local rivals that their efforts to acquire similar virtual rights in 2015 and 2016 proved fruitless.

The EC issued a brief statement saying Ladbrokes’ virtual approval “may have resulted in the betting company enjoying a de facto exclusive right to operate virtual betting in Belgium since 2014, without any remuneration in favor of the Belgian state by Ladbrokes in return.” The EC went on to say this “measure may have distorted competition and the Commission has doubts that it complies with EU state aid rules.”