German gambling entrepreneur and Merkur founder Paul Gauselmann dies at 91
Paul Gauselmann, who built Germany's largest gambling enterprise from a small jukebox repair business into a 2.1 billion euro company, died on Friday at the age of 91.
The Merkur Group announced on Friday that its founder, Paul Gauselmann, died at the age of 91, shortly before his 92nd birthday. Gauselmann transformed a one-person workshop established in the post-war period into Germany's largest gaming company, expanding the business into an international enterprise with approximately 15,000 employees and total revenues of 2.1 billion euros. The company confirmed his death from its headquarters in the eastern Westphalian town of Espelkamp. Gauselmann led the group for 67 years before retiring from executive leadership in 2024. He is survived by his wife, four sons, nine grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.
From jukebox repair to international gaming business
Born in a village near Münster, Gauselmann initially worked as a qualified telecommunications inspector before establishing his venture during the 1950s. His commercial activity began as a secondary occupation modifying and servicing coin-operated jukeboxes. In reflections on his background, Gauselmann pointed to early economic hardship as the primary driver behind his entrepreneurial ambition.
The hardship of my youth taught me to make the best of my situation.
That part-time activity grew into a conglomerate operating amusement arcades, gaming casinos, sports betting outlets, and digital gambling platforms. The business also developed chance-based software and manufactured electronic gaming machines for export and domestic deployment. In addition to running his company, Gauselmann served for 28 years as chairman of the Association of the German Amusement and Vending Machine Industry.
Philanthropy, public honors, and foundation ownership
The gaming sector faced scrutiny from public critics who argued that commercial gambling machines foster behavioural addiction among players. Alongside his commercial expansion, Gauselmann directed earnings into local community projects, constructing daycare facilities, planting trees, and sponsoring sports teams and television productions. In 2003, the German state awarded him the Federal Cross of Merit 1st Class, and in 2004 he received honorary citizenship from both Espelkamp and Lübbecke. To protect the corporate group from fragmentation, the family transferred all company shares into the Gauselmann Family Foundation in 2016, establishing the trust as the sole legal owner of Merkur Group.
- Begins repairing and modifying jukeboxes in Westphalia as a side business
- Receives the Federal Cross of Merit 1st Class
- Granted honorary citizenship of the towns of Espelkamp and Lübbecke
- Transfers family company shares to the newly established Gauselmann Family Foundation
- Steps down from the top executive role at Merkur Group after 67 years
- Dies in Espelkamp at the age of 91, shortly before his 92nd birthday
Executive succession and later years
Gauselmann stepped down from group management in late 2024, transferring executive leadership to long-serving corporate manager Lars Felderhoff. The restructuring left the executive board without any Gauselmann family members, while his son Michael Gauselmann assumed the chairmanship of both the supervisory board and the family foundation. Gauselmann placed strict emphasis on managerial discipline and humility among his executive team, citing his own early experiences before rising to executive leadership. Despite his official retirement, he maintained a regular presence at company headquarters, visiting on Tuesdays and Thursdays to review day-to-day operations.
I would not know that I missed anything that I still needed to do.
