SBC News

The Netherlands Gambling Authority, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) is closely monitoring betting companies for illegal offerings as the country doubles down on player safety.

It has this week imposed a fine on three different entities; SBM Holding Group, Sun Block Media Labs 2.0 Ltd, and JEF Holdings Ltd, each for illegal online gambling. All breaches also included advertisements that were published on the affiliate website Casinoscout.nl.

What’s wrong with Casinoscout.nl?
Although the site initially promoted only licensed gambling operators, this changed earlier in the year when ownership of the site transferred to a new party.

Following the acquisition, the website began featuring content that promoted illegal gambling operators. The KSA made it clear that both offering illegal gambling services and advertising them is a violation.

After detecting the illegal promotions, the KSA issued warnings to the new owners, advising them to cease activity or face penalties. When the owners failed to respond, the KSA escalated the matter by contacting the Netherlands Internet Domain Registration Foundation (SIDN) to suspend the website.

This led to a temporary shutdown of Casinoscout.nl, and the owner briefly installed an IP block to restrict access from the Netherlands. However, illegal advertisements later reappeared, prompting the KSA to order a permanent site shutdown.

During its investigation, the KSA also discovered that Casinoscout.nl linked to another site, besteonlinecasinonederland.com, which was also found to be promoting illegal gambling. This second site is operated by the same group of owners.

Since the violations are ongoing, the KSA has now imposed a formal penalty order on all three companies. If they continue to advertise illegal casinos, each will face fines of €75,000 per week, up to a maximum of €225,000.

Prioritising local safeguarding
In continuing its crackdown on player protection, the KSA has also contacted ZEbetting and Betca regarding prohibited betting offers during tennis matches. Both providers were found to have offered wagers on winning or losing a set.

The KSA explained: “To prevent match-fixing and protect the integrity of the sport, Dutch gambling legislation prohibits betting on certain matches and events.

“These include events that are negative or easily manipulated. These events also include winning and losing specific sets in tennis matches. Therefore, bets on these events are prohibited.”

These warnings come less than three months after the regulator issued a €734,000 fine over a player protection breach involving young adults.

An investigation focused on 10 customer accounts, all belonging to players aged 18 to 23.

Each account showed clear breaches of responsible gambling standards, with some individuals losing “tens of thousands of euros”, and in certain cases, within a very short period.

By allowing such high losses without adequate intervention, the KSA asserted that the operator neglected its responsibility to protect vulnerable users, particularly those in the younger age group.

ÚRHH, the Gambling Authority of the Republic of Slovakia, has announced that 20,500 citizens have used its RVO system to self-exclude themselves from gambling activities.

The figure represents a milestone for ÚRHH’s governance of Slovakian gambling following the legislative reforms in 2019, introduced under the new Slovak Gambling Act.

The RVO system (Register of Excluded Persons) was created as a core mechanism of the government’s new gambling framework in 2019, allowing individuals to voluntarily block access to all licensed gambling activities, both online and land-based.

ÚRHH’s Director General, Jana Mravíková, noted that the rising uptake in self-exclusion “confirms the functionality and justification of this key regulatory tool,” and reflects growing public awareness around gambling-related harm.

“Our goal is to create and maintain a safe and transparent environment in the gambling market,” she added, underlining the regulator’s broader efforts to promote prevention and education.

According to the regulator’s latest monitoring report, self-exclusion requests have more than tripled since May 2020, when the RVO recorded 5,871 registered individuals. In May 2025 alone, 513 new self-exclusion requests were processed, while 186 individuals requested removal from the system.

This development comes amid heightened scrutiny over the fast-growing online casino sector, which has now overtaken land-based gambling in both volume and revenue. ÚRHH reported that in 2024, online casinos accounted for €12.8bn in total bets, driving €480m in player losses — matching the combined losses from land-based casinos and gaming halls.

While overall gambling activity contributed a record €347m in tax revenue to the state budget in 2024, concerns are mounting over the disproportionate risks associated with digital gambling. Mravíková has pledged that ÚRHH will maintain close monitoring of the market’s divergence, especially in relation to high-risk online games such as slots and instant-play products.

Health experts have urged the regulator to consider stricter controls for online casino offerings, including time and deposit limits, affordability checks, and behavioural analytics to flag at-risk users.

While no formal policy has been adopted, ÚRHH has acknowledged that it is still evaluating whether specific safeguards will be introduced to strengthen consumer protections in the online space.

As consumer engagement continues to shift online, the future direction of regulation and the government’s approach to managing addiction and harm will depend heavily on the data being generated through the RVO and other player protection mechanism

The Kamer has been warned that Dutch gambling will require a new guaranteed funding model to research the addictive behaviours and psychological disorders linked to problem gambling.

The demand has been made by the Dutch Institute of Psychologists (NIP) as its headline measure of the forthcoming overhaul and relaunch of the Netherlands’ online gambling regime, to replace the existing Remote Gambling Act (KOA).

Publishing its paper of recommendations, NIP members expressed their support of State Secretary Teun Struycken’s forthcoming reforms to implement an outright ban on advertising and impose an under-21 restriction on high-risk games.

In February, Struycken announced that he had secured a mandate to re-launch the Netherlands’ online gambling regime, with a view to impose stringent protections on consumers aged under 24 – a principle supported by NIP.

Independent oversight of new regime
Psychologists have warned that legislative proposals risk falling short unless they establish an independent oversight system and a dedicated funding model for research and treatment of gambling addiction.

Central to NIP’s proposals is the call for external, independent oversight of licensed gambling operators, placing public health experts in charge of auditing protective measures and intervening when risk thresholds are exceeded.

The psychologists argue that current “self-regulatory” approaches are failing, allowing gambling companies to dictate the terms of duty-of-care without transparency or public accountability.

“Commercial parties have no business conducting health assessments using proprietary algorithms that cannot be scrutinised,” the NIP paper states.

“When financial thresholds are crossed, the assessment of whether a player can afford to continue gambling must be made by an independent expert — not the casino profiting from them.”

Mandatory funding model
To support long-term prevention and intervention strategies, the NIP has proposed the creation of a ring fenced research fund dedicated to studying gambling-related behavioural and psychological disorders.

This fund, the group suggests, should be independent of both general government budgets and gambling provider contributions, and instead sourced from earmarked gambling taxes.

The model would replace the current Addiction Prevention Fund structure, which is partially funded by mandatory operator contributions. Psychologists say this model is unstable and vulnerable to political interference, especially amid public budget tightening.

“Without guaranteed, independent funding, we cannot develop the science or treatment networks needed to protect vulnerable people,” said Dr. Marloes Bakker, an addiction psychologist and NIP spokesperson. “Gambling harm is a public health crisis, and it must be addressed with the same rigour as alcohol or tobacco policy.”

Expanding Dutch Pathways
NIP further urges the government to expand specialised care networks for gambling addiction, citing a severe lack of clinical expertise and treatment availability in the Netherlands.

As part of the reformed regime, the organisation wants to see the establishment of regional treatment centres linked to universities and mental health institutions, where patients can access tailored behavioural therapy, psychological diagnostics, and recovery pathways.

Treatment access should be supported by preventive measures, including early intervention systems, automated alerts for harmful gambling behaviour, and clear public education campaigns designed in collaboration with health authorities..

As the General Election on 29 October 2025 approaches, the Kamer remains adamant that the mandate to overhaul the Dutch online gambling sector will be maintained, regardless of the election outcome.

The initiative has broad cross-party support, reflecting a rare political consensus following the break-up of the Conservative coalition government in May.

Healthcare experts remain clear: without independent oversight and guaranteed investment in behavioural research and treatment networks, gambling harm will persist.

“The public will not accept a market where profits grow and protections remain optional,” said Dr. Marloes Bakker noted: “This is the moment for the Netherlands to lead Europe in building a gambling regime grounded in science, independence, and care.”