Portugal was one of the four countries to sign the shared liquidity agreement back in 2017 - amongst France, Spain, and Italy. The entire poker community welcomed the project, but for a long time, it looked like real steps wouldn't happen.
However, earlier this year, PokerStars officially launched the Franco-Spanish website, where players from France and Spain can play together. The site made more headlines, when they announced, that players from other countries are also allowed to join.
As we reported then, it seemed like neither Portugues nor Italian citizens will be able to play in the shared player pool anytime soon. This announcement now proves us wrong. After the publication of the shared liquidity technical standard, PokerStars could now open its Europe network to players from Portugal anytime.
PokerStars.es is currently the third biggest network in terms of cash game traffic and if another country is allowed to join them (and only them so far) it's easy to predict that the numbers will get a serious boost.
Other online gambling operators, like Winamax or Partypoker are also interested in the newly regulated markets. In fact, Partypoker has also launched its Franco-Spanish site and Winamax has received the license from France's online gaming regulator (ARJEL). They're currently waiting for the other countries to do the same.
The statement we cited earlier seems to be even truer after this news: “We believe that the newly shared liquidity will be large enough to accommodate foreign players without negatively impacting the ecosystem,” - posted a staff member of PokerStars' on a French community forum.
In the meantime, you can still sharpen your knives for the new competition by staying in shape in Partypoker's cash games. The site honors your efforts with 100% first deposit bonus up to $500 as well as cash back up to 40%! Those who register through rakerace.com are also eligible for our exclusive $4,000 monthly race!
See our ongoing promotions here!
Contact us here!
0 comments