Ireland is messing with the minds of its retail bookmakers, ordering them to close their doors just 24 hours after they reopened following their extended COVID-19 closure.

On Tuesday, Flutter Entertainment’s Paddy Power brand and GVC Holdings’ Ladbrokes brand each announced they were shutting their betting shops in the Republic of Ireland. Both companies had opened their shops on Monday following what they thought was a ‘good to go’ signal from local authorities.

All Irish betting shops were closed in mid-March to minimize futher COVID-19 transmission. In late May, as Ireland’s infection curve flattened, the Irish Bookmakers Association (IBA) announced that its members’ shops could reopen on June 29. This launch date was subsequently advanced to June 8 but most major bookies didn’t reopen until this Monday (15).

Paddy Power issued a statement to RTÉ saying it had reopened its shops on Monday “in line with other bookies in Ireland, following the government guidelines on reopening of retail outlets.” The statement added that after opening Monday, “we became aware of a government specification that bookies should open on June 29,” prompting the company to shut its doors once again.