Finland’s Gambling Reform Explained: From Monopoly to Licensed Market

How Did the Finnish Gambling Monopoly Work?

Since 2017, Veikkaus Oy has held exclusive rights to all gambling in Finland — casino games, sports betting, lotteries, and physical slot machines. The monopoly was justified on the grounds of player protection and public benefit: all profits would flow back to Finnish society.

At its peak, Veikkaus generated over €1,260 million in annual gross gaming revenue. In 2025, the company contributed €615 million to Finnish society — funding culture, sports, science, and youth work. The monopoly model was, on paper, a neat arrangement: one operator, one regulator, and a clear channel for profits to serve the public good.

But the digital transformation of gambling would fundamentally undermine this logic.

Why Wasn’t the Monopoly Enough?

The rise of online gambling eroded the monopoly’s ability to channelise players into the regulated system. International operators — accessible from any Finnish smartphone — offered a wider range of products, more competitive odds, and aggressive bonus terms that Veikkaus, bound by its public mandate, could not match.

The numbers tell the story clearly:

Metric	Figure	Trend
Offshore GGR (2025)	€903M	+74% since 2021
Veikkaus GGR (2020)	€1,260M	—
Veikkaus GGR (2025)	€936M	−26%
Offshore online casino share	76.6%	Veikkaus: 23.4%
Offshore betting share	72%	Veikkaus: 28%
Veikkaus digital market share	39%	Down from 84% in five years

Veikkaus’ revenue fell from €1,260 million in 2020 to €936 million in 2025 — a decline of 26%. Offshore operators now control 76.6% of the online casino market and 72% of sports betting. Veikkaus’ digital market share collapsed from 84% to just 39% in five years.

The monopoly, designed for a physical world, was losing the digital battle decisively.

How Have Gambling Problems Developed Under the Monopoly?

One of the core arguments for maintaining the monopoly was player protection. But the data shows that gambling-related harm increased significantly during the monopoly era.

According to THL (the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare) in 2023, the problem gambling rate among Finnish adults reached 4.2% — equivalent to approximately 151,000 people. This represents an increase of roughly 40% compared to earlier measurements. Among young men aged 18–24, the rate was 6.9%, the highest in the Nordic countries.

The human cost extends far beyond the individuals themselves. An estimated 733,000 family members are affected by someone else’s gambling problem. Peluuri, Finland’s gambling helpline, received over 10,000 contacts in 2024.

The monopoly’s failure to channelise players into the regulated system meant that a growing share of gambling occurred outside any regulatory framework — without player protection tools, without loss limits, and without any mechanism for early intervention.

How Does the New Licensing System Work?

Finland’s new gambling legislation replaces the monopoly with a European licensing model. The key milestones and features:

Dimension	Details
Current system	Veikkaus state monopoly (since 2017)
New system	European licensing model
Applications open	March 2026
First licences	Autumn 2026
Market opening	1 January 2027
B2B licences	July 2028
Expected applicants	40–50 operators
Channelisation target	90%
Offshore GGR (2025)	€903M
Veikkaus GGR (2025)	€936M
Problem gambling rate	4.2% (151,000 people)
PSP blocking	Active since 2023

Applications opened in March 2026 via the Finnish Lottery Inspectorate (Poliisihallitus, Arpajaishallinto). The first licences are expected to be granted in autumn 2026, with the market becoming fully operational on 1 January 2027.

The licensing framework includes several mandatory requirements:

• Mandatory ID verification at registration — no anonymous play
• Loss limits that players set themselves, with mandatory cooling-off periods before increases
• Responsible gambling tools including self-exclusion, session limits, and reality checks
• GGR tax that funds social contributions, replacing the old profit-transfer model
• Advertising allowed but strictly regulated — no targeting of minors or vulnerable groups

The regulatory authority has been given strong enforcement powers, including payment service provider (PSP) blocking to cut off financial flows to unlicensed operators, and DNS blocking to restrict access to illegal sites. The channelisation target is 90% — meaning nine out of ten gambling euros should flow through licensed operators.

What Has Finland Learned from the Swedish Reform?

Finland has had the advantage of observing Sweden’s re-regulation, which took effect in January 2019. The Swedish experience has provided both a model and a cautionary tale.

In February 2026, the Swedish National Audit Office (Riksrevisionen) published its audit report RiR 2026:1, concluding that the Swedish regulation has “significant shortcomings.” Child protection was found to be “particularly inadequate.” Sweden now has approximately 350,000 problem gamblers, with social costs estimated at SEK 11.5 billion per year.

Finland has deliberately chosen a stricter path than Sweden on several key dimensions:

• Stronger player protection — mandatory loss limits from day one, not voluntary
• Stricter advertising regulation — tighter restrictions on when and how operators can advertise
• More authority powers — broader enforcement toolkit including both PSP and DNS blocking
• PSP blocking already implemented — Finland introduced payment blocking for unlicensed operators in 2023, while Sweden was still investigating the measure

The Finnish approach reflects a clear lesson from Sweden: opening the market without sufficiently strong regulatory tools risks undermining both channelisation and player protection.

What Does the Reform Mean for Finnish Players?

For Finnish players, the reform brings several concrete changes:

Tax treatment: Winnings at licensed operators remain tax-free — just as they were under the Veikkaus monopoly. However, winnings at unlicensed operators are taxed as income. This creates a clear financial incentive for players to choose licensed sites.

Dispute resolution: Players at licensed operators have access to a formal dispute resolution mechanism via the Finnish regulatory authority. This means that if a dispute arises over a withdrawal, bonus terms, or account closure, there is an official body to turn to.

Player fund protection: Licensed operators must segregate player funds from operational funds, ensuring that deposits are protected even if an operator faces financial difficulties.

Competition benefits: With 40–50 operators expected to enter the market, competition is expected to deliver better odds, a wider range of games, and more competitive bonus terms. The Danish experience — which achieved 85–90% channelisation within three years of licensing in 2012 — suggests that a well-designed licensing system can successfully attract players from the unregulated market.

Finland could be the first Nordic market to exceed 90% channelisation.

“Finland could become the first Nordic market to achieve channelisation above 90%. If successful, the reform sets a new European standard for how a licensed gambling market can combine competition with player protection.”

— Tommi Korhonen, Gambling Market Analyst, Bonusetu.media