Course holding permit for game (8)
I believe the answer is:
roulette
'for game' is the definition.
(roulette is a kind of game)
'course holding permit' is the wordplay.
'course' becomes 'route' (I've seen this in other clues).
'holding' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'permit' becomes 'let' (synonyms).
'route' enclosing 'let' is 'ROULETTE'.
(Other definitions for roulette that I've seen before include "Game of chance with small ball" , "Casino game" , "Whirling numbered wheel" , "SPORT/GAME" , "Spinning-wheel game" .)