Dutch Regulator KSA Raises Alarm as Illegal Gambling Overtakes Legal Market

(AsiaGameHub) –   The Dutch online gambling sector has reached a threshold that regulators hoped to avoid. Unlicensed operators now command a larger portion of gambling revenue than their licensed counterparts, with the KSA attributing this shift to player protection measures that are diverting expenditure from the regulated market.

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Good to Know

• The proportion of gambling spend channeled to licensed Dutch operators dropped from 51% at the close of 2024 to 49% in H1 2025.
• The KSA approximates illegal online Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) at €617 million, slightly exceeding the €600 million produced by licensed operators during the same timeframe.
• Player channelisation remained significantly higher at around 94%, indicating that while many users retain legal accounts, they are allocating some of their spending to other venues.

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Dutch Illegal Gambling Revenue Moves Ahead Of Legal Market

The KSA stated that the legal market has lost its revenue lead. During the first six months of 2025, licensed operators yielded approximately €600 million in GGR, whereas the unlicensed online segment attained an estimated €617 million. This decline drove the channelisation rate by spend under 50%, representing a significant reversal for the Dutch regulatory framework.

The regulator connects a substantial part of this downturn to stricter player protection regulations and increased gambling taxes. Deposit limits enforced in October 2024 capped deposits at €700 for players over 24 and €300 for those aged 18-24. The KSA noted these rules were designed to mitigate harm, but evidence suggests players are moving a portion of their spending to unlicensed platforms where such restrictions are absent.

Legitimate gambling activity did not vanish, but revenue growth halted. Monthly active player accounts hit 1.38 million in the latter half of 2025, while licensed operator GGR remained mostly unchanged year-on-year at €602 million. This implies continued participation, but with lower average losses per account and increased financial leakage from the regulated system.

The KSA additionally recorded 2,005 complaints regarding illegal gambling in 2025, a 34% rise from the previous year. As a countermeasure, it initiated Project Disconnect, an expanded enforcement strategy focused on disrupting the support infrastructure of unlicensed operators instead of targeting individual sites. Preliminary outcomes have involved the near-total elimination of paid Google search advertisements for illicit gambling sites since August 2025, along with the removal of illegal .nl domains via SIDN.

Regulatory action intensified across the market. The KSA imposed fines totaling €8.6 million on five licensed operators in 2025, primarily for lapses in duty of care, and penalized four illegal operators with fines summing €31.2 million. However, the regulator highlighted that existing legislation restricts fines to a maximum of 10% of an operator’s global GGR, curbing the impact on offshore entities. The KSA is currently in discussions with the Ministry of Justice to amend this regulation.

The consequences are also becoming apparent in the state’s financial accounts. The KSA disclosed an €11.1 million budget deficit for 2025, which incorporates a €5.3 million gap in gambling tax income associated with reduced legal spending following the implementation of deposit limits.