Poland’s gamblers will have to wait a while longer for the ability to play at an online casino – one the government approves of, at least.

A few days before Christmas, Poland’s deputy finance minister Piotr Walczak found himself in the unenviable position of informing the public that the national lottery operator’s online casino site won’t be ready to launch until the third or fourth quarter of 2018.

A little over a year ago, Poland amended its gambling laws to permit online casino, poker and bingo products alongside the existing online sports betting sites. However, the new products would be the sole responsibility of the state-owned Totalizator Sportowy.

Last August, the lottery operator was supposed to open a tender for a technology partner to power its ‘eKasyno’ offering. However, a freedom of information request from opposition MPs forced Walczak to confirm that the tender didn’t actually start taking bids until November, and the government has yet to designate which lucky suitor will get to escort Totalizator Sportowy to the online casino ball.