Austria's Supreme Court has determined that FIFA loot boxes do not constitute gambling
Image credit: Electronic Arts/FIFA
The Austrian Supreme Court has determined that the loot boxes in FIFA games do not qualify as gambling due to the element of skill involved. According to GamesMarkt, the court in Vienna concluded that while the FIFA Ultimate Team feature is not deemed gambling, loot boxes might still meet the criteria for gambling. They must be evaluated alongside the games they are featured in to make this determination.
This ruling stemmed from a lawsuit against Electronic Arts and Sony, initiated by a group of players, supported by Austrian litigation funder Padronus, who collectively invested €20,000 in FIFA loot boxes.
Richard Eibl, managing director at Padronus, remarked, “We consider the judgment to be legally flawed and will wait to see whether other judges of the Supreme Court share a different view regarding our other pending cases.” Padronus still has pending litigation against EA and Sony concerning this issue.
An Electronic Arts spokesperson informed GamesIndustry.biz, “We welcome the decision from the Austrian Supreme Court confirming that EA SPORTS FC and the FC Ultimate Team mode do not constitute gambling. The decision, which is final, brings much needed clarity to both industry and Austrian players.”
Legal expert Leon Xiao expressed to GamesIndustry.biz that this outcome might push Austrian lawmakers to consider stricter regulations if worries about loot boxes remain, especially after the current gambling law framework failed to provide adequate consumer protections.
Xiao elaborated that many existing gambling laws did not account for mechanisms like loot boxes, making it predictable that such laws struggle to address these issues. He suggested that while new laws might not be necessary, existing contract, consumer, and advertising laws could address the problem if enforced correctly—highlighting a current lack of enforcement.
He noted that the Netherlands reached a similar verdict in 2022, a move he attributes to parallels in Dutch and Austrian gambling laws. In contrast, Xiao pointed out that UK gambling legislation is notably different, referencing a case involving ex-Jagex developer Andrew Lakeman, where the court recognized transferrable virtual currency as "property"—a decision that underscores the need for more stringent regulations on loot boxes with transferable rewards.
This story was updated to include comments from EA.