A.J. Koehn - Player Protection Hub

Regulators warn bettors to keep a level head during World Cup

A.J. KoehnJune 11, 2026022 views

The summer football fever is upon us, with mere hours to go until the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. This has prompted gambling regulators across Europe to ask bettors not to let excitement cloud their rational judgement.

As the tournament kicks off this Thursday, 11 June, football fans will witness the biggest edition of the World Cup in its entire history, with 48 teams locked in a battle across three countries in North America and the prestige golden trophy at stake.

The size of the competition has prompted gambling operators to scramble their global marketing teams and capitalise on the increased exposure.

Balancing that out, however, are the regulators on the other side, who in the World Cup lead up have worked overtime to ensure that bettors do not forget about controlling their gambling behaviour.

France

The French team is being touted as one of the odds’ favourites when it comes to lifting the trophy this year. As such, the national regulator ANJ anticipates a high vol..

Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin: Regulatory consistency stops the normalisation of youth gambling

A.J. KoehnJune 11, 2026023 views

Jake Pollard

Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin’s term as president of the Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) ends on 15 June .

Interviewed by SBC correspondent Jake Pollard, she reflects on developments of the French and European gambling sectors including taxation, the normalisation of gambling and the regulatory evolution of the online sector.

Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin has chaired the Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) since 2020 and, just as she took the helm of the French gambling regulator amid a global uncertainty linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, the creation of the authority also marked a major change: under the new structure, all gambling activities in France are now placed under the supervision of the ANJ.

Until then, horseracing, land-based casinos and lottery activities had fallen under the remit of the relevant ministries (Interior, budget, Agriculture etc.). The aim in 2020 was to harmonise regulation across the various verticals, including the digital sector of course, and to..

UK gambling adverts under more regulatory pressure – but could it be progression?

A.J. KoehnJune 10, 2026021 views

UK gambling operators are facing increased regulatory scrutiny after the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) announced a new compliance initiative.

The initiative targets social media content that could appeal to under-18s, but, despite it looking like more scrutiny for operators, some may see it as progression.

An enforcement notice has been issued to all gambling businesses, warning that, from 11 June, it will begin actively monitoring content using the ASA’s AI-powered Active Ad Monitoring System.

Gambling authorities and social media to work together

A key milestone here is that the monitoring will be supported by partnerships with major social media platforms.

Operators found to be breaching advertising rules will be required to remove or amend content immediately, with persistent non-compliance potentially resulting in referrals to both platform operators and the Gambling Commission.

While gambling operators may be stung th..

BetBlocker welcomes Monica Shafaq as Director of Strategy

A.J. KoehnJune 9, 2026028 views

Duncan Garvie, Founder of gambling harm tool BetBlocker, has welcomed Monica Shafaq as the new Director of Strategy and Partnerships.

Shafaq carries a comprehensive career experience when it comes to problem gambling, having previously held the Chief Executive Officer position at Gordon Moody, a prominent UK charity specialising in gambling harm treatment.

She’s also a mental health expert, having carried the Chief Executive Officer title for 13 years at mental health and wellbeing organisation the Kaleidoscope Plus Group. Besides that, she’s quite versed in the UK sports scene, particularly football, evidenced in her past work with numerous football charities.

At BetBlocker, which was set up by Garvie with the purpose of aiding bettors who have a problematic gambling behaviour, Shafaq will certainly be a valuable asset in rebuilding their lives back up.

Garvie added: “I’ve had the privilege of getting to know Monica over the last few years, and have found her to be a principled an..

Gordon Moody appoints new CEO to take on challenges of statutory levy era

A.J. KoehnJune 8, 2026030 views

Gordon Moody has revamped its leadership team amid a significant change for the UK gambling harm treatment sector, with the new systems in Wales condemned as “unable to meet the needs” of those using it.

One of the UK’s leading specialist gambling harm treatment support organisations , Gordon Moody received £4.5m funding from the Office of Health Improvement and Disparity (OHID) under the new statutory levy framework, implemented as a key measure of the Gambling Act review.

The statutory levy sees licensed UK gambling companies make mandatory yearly payments to support research, education and treatment (RET) services. Prior to this, funding was paid voluntarily to GambleAware, which distributed it to organisations like Gordon Moody.

With GambleAware’s doors now closed (as of March) and the new framework being adopted across Great Britain, Gordon Moody has appointed a new board of trustees as it heads into the new era of gambling harm treatment.

Claire Arnold, who has been a member..

Veikkaus introduces age-sensitive loss limit triggers

A.J. KoehnJune 4, 2026032 views

Finland’s state operator Veikkaus will roll out a new set of individualised safer gambling tools correlating to the harm risk of every major player age group.

The move comes ahead of the rollout of an open betting market in Finland next July. The other major stakeholder in the current system, the Aland Islands’ Paf, has taken similar measures as the duo prepare for the liberalisation of Finland’s gambling market.

From 9 June, Veikkaus customers will have their profiles fitted with a new notification system that tracks their losses and informs them when they approach a certain amount.

The update will move away from the standard €24,000 annual loss limit that is currently in place for all players, and will instead introduce periodical alerts sent out when a certain amount is reached based on a player’s age – with the fastest loss triggers rolled out for the youngest legal gamblers.

Risk lowers as age rises for Veikkaus players

Those aged 18 and 19 will be preemptively alerted when ..

Polymarket and Kalshi makes another European enemy as Spain launches legal action

A.J. KoehnMay 29, 2026041 views

Spain’s La Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego (DGOJ) has become the latest gambling regulator in Europe to launch disciplinary proceedings against prediction market operators Polymarket and Kalshi.

The regulator has accused both companies of operating in the country without the required gambling licenses.

In a notice published in Spain’s Official State Gazette (BOE), the DGOJ confirmed it has also ordered the precautionary blocking of both websites in Spain while the proceedings are ongoing.

The regulator said prediction markets fall within Spain’s gambling framework whereby users can wager on future events, meaning operators must hold a specific administrative authorisation to legally offer the products in the country.

The DGOJ stressed that unlicensed platforms do not comply with Spain’s regulatory safeguards, including identity verification controls, protections preventing access by minors and self-excluded users, and broader consumer protection standards.

Spanish autho..

Could this year’s State of Origin be the last where Australians see gambling ads?

A.J. KoehnMay 29, 2026034 views

State of Origin 2026 kicks off this morning for UK viewers, but it could be the last series before sweeping changes and reforms to advertising and sponsorships.

The New South Wales Blues take on the Queensland Maroons in the 45th renewal of the annual best-of-three series, with game one kicking off at Accor Stadium in Sydney at 8:05pm local time (11:05am UK time).

Many are once again discussing the top State of Origin matchups – Tedesco vs Ponga, Cleary vs Walker, Robson vs Grant – but a wider ongoing discussion has been at the centre of debate in Australia in recent months: gambling reform advocates vs the gambling industry.

Last month, PM Anthony Albanese stated that the Labor government will look to implement “strong and decisive actions” to stem the proliferation of gambling advertising.

The proposed widespread 2027 changes

From 1 January 2027, the Australian government will implement these five measures:

Broadcast TV limits: Maximum of three gambling ads per hour between ..

Commission pushes back deposit limit deadline in midst of UK affordability debate

A.J. KoehnMay 29, 2026048 views

British betting companies have been given more time to get their houses in order around deposit limits, with the deadline to implement new policies pushed back by three months.

The Gambling Commission’s latest announcement comes amid a fiery conversation around gambling affordability in the UK, with the regulator still yet to make a decision around when or whether to introduce Financial Risk Assessments (FRAs).

The regulator has stated this week that implementation day for a new set of deposit limit requirements announced last October had been moved from 30 June 2026 to 30 September 2026.

From this date, only gross deposit limits can be offered over fixed time frames. Rolling and fixed time frames can be used for other limit types.

Operators have been set three tasks from 30 September:

Offer gross deposit limits to their customers and re-introduce gross deposit limits to customers’ available options

Ensure gross deposit limits are called deposit limits and make sure that only the..

Armenia adopts payment lock to protect new gambling framework

A.J. KoehnMay 29, 2026034 views

he Republic of Armenia is moving ahead with tightening controls on digital betting, payments and advertising as Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government confirmed that he will apply a new compliance framework for gambling licensees.

Applied from 1 May onwards, the technical commands will be overseen by Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan and State Revenue Committee chief Rustam Badasyan, who seek to tighten financial supervision, reinforce legal gambling channels and squeeze offshore operators out of Armenia’s market.

Driving the political agenda is Civil Contract MP Hayk Sargsyan, who has become the leading parliamentary voice behind the overhaul.

At the centre of the strategy sits payments enforcement. Armenian authorities are looking to block financial transfers to unlicensed operators while tightening anti-money laundering and know-your-customer obligations across licensed gambling businesses.

The government will simultaneously advance the roll-out of a centralised monitor..