Online lottery betting operator Lottoland has been dealt a setback in Germany after a court ruled that the company had no legal right to operate in the country.

On Friday, German media reported that a district court in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate had ruled that the Gibraltar-licensed defendant – not identified in most reports but which other media claim is Lottoland – had no local permission “to organize or mediate games of chance” in Germany.

The case against Lottoland was brought by state lottery operator Lotto Rhineland-Pfalz, who sought not only to prevent Lottoland from operating in Germany, but also sought to compel Lottoland to reveal how much money it had made from German customers and to pay an appropriate financial penalty.

Lottoland attempted to defend its right to operate by pointing to recent court rulings that found Germany’s lottery monopolies had contravened European Union rules by heavily promoting their wares. The EU permits state monopolies to exist if their primary aim is to minimize local gambling activity, and excessive marketing that urges punters to play tends to undercut that rationale.