Discover Lithuania's Poker Scene and Gambling Laws

Lithuania is a former member state of the Soviet Union who became independent in 1989. During the hard Communist regime, all forms of gambling were prohibited. In the 1980’s, the dictatorship softened and some casinos were starting to open up – however, mostly in the Russian motherland, not in the smaller republics.

So it took a while for the country to establish the legal gambling landscape. Legislation was first passed in 2000. Until then, the betting men and women of Lithuania had to turn to the black market.

Today, the World Casino Directory website lists 60 casinos and 33 poker tables across Lithuania. They also share some other interesting bits of information.

You need to be 18 to buy a lottery ticket or play bingo – however, you can’t enter a land casino until you’re 21. Also, any type of advertising for gambling is illegal, with the exception of sponsorship of professional sports teams.

The website also mentions a so-called “self-exclusion list”. This is a registry citizens can voluntarily be listed on if they don’t want to be allowed in casinos. This, evidently, is for people who feel they might have a gambling problem.

Famous Lithuanian Poker Players

Antanas Guoga, better known as his “stage name” Tony G, was a regular on a number of popular poker shows. He appeared on Poker After Dark, airing on NBC between 2007-2011, and on the PokerStars Big Game, airing on the Fox Network between 2010-2011.

On these shows, he gained notoriety for his harsh and biting table talk. He played both tournaments and high stakes cash games on camera.

On Hendon, Tony G’s profile shows a little over $6 million in live tournament earnings, topping the Lithuanian list.

He also served one term as a Member of the European Parliament from Lithuania, from 2014 to 2019.

Second on the Lithuanian all time list on Hendon is Matas Cimbolas with $3.2 million. His biggest live tournament score is taking 2nd place in the $10K Main Event at the WPT Los Angeles Poker Classics in 2019 for $646,930.

Online, he plays under the screen name “bebaimis777” and racked up more than $3.8 million in online MTT cashes.