The week that was in the financial world of U.K. gambling begins with more bad news: The crackdown against online gambling is apparently spreading to Europe as well, as French officials arrested two executives with Austrian online company BWIN Friday. The two are reported to be appearing before a judge Saturday for allegedly violating French gaming laws, according to police, and were held overnight in the French city of Nice.

BWIN’s Manfred Bodner and Norbert Teufelberger were arrested before a throng of shocked sports journalists as the two were preparing to announce a sponsorship deal with AS Monaco Football Club. According to an announcement released in the aftermath by BWIN, the duo, “were detained for questioning by French  authorities because of alleged violation of French gaming laws.â€? Both men may be charged with allegedly violating French laws meant to protect both the Francaise des Jeux (FdJ), the conductor of the national lottery, and the PMU, which controls wagering for horse races. A spokesman for the FdJ was clear in the intention of the move, stating, “It is reasonable to assume that any other executive from an online bookmaker who came to France would also be arrested. We are doing exactly the same as the authorities in the US who arrested the British executives.â€?

BWIN spokeswoman Karin Klein said Saturday that the two mean are viewing the arrest as “mental and physical tortureâ€? and warned that the company plans to take “vehement action against these human rights violations.â€? The company has reportedly already contacted both legal and human rights representatives to aid in the case. “The arrest was initiated by the French monopolist ‘Francaise des Jeux’ with the goal of causing fear,” said Klein, according to the Austrian News Agency.

Shares in the major online gaming companies took another hit following the news of the latest arrests, especially following in the wake of the recent Sportingbet and BetOnSports arrests in the United States. PartyGaming appears to have been the biggest casualty, as they dipped 9-1/2p to close at 100.75p. Elsewhere, 888 Holdings continued its descent as well, closing at 141.75 at Friday close, down from 143.50 earlier in the week. Of note, beleaguered Sportingbet rebounded from a two-year low earlier in the period to close at 172p Friday, up from a low of 139.64p following the resumption of its trading on Monday. Rumored takeover target World Gaming was not as fortunate, however, as they plummeted further to close at 59p Friday. Finally, Stanley Leisure was up 2 percent to 876p after its acceptance of an offer from from Malaysia’s Genting International.

- Rex Harris