In October 2021, players in The Netherlands finally had their choice of legal online casinos. After dabbling in a gray market worth hundreds of millions for years, these legal options offered a bona fide alternative. In some ways, the legalization of online gambling in the Netherlands has been a success.
From the government’s perspective, the most important goal – where at least 80 per cent of players use a legal online casino after three years – has already been exceeded within the first year. But much like other countries, there have been challenges on the government level, too. While the Dutch licence is one of the strictest in the world, there are many appeals for stricter and new rules.
Then there are other measurements of success. From a business standpoint, what are the experiences in the Dutch market so far?
Slow growth
As with most other new markets, the Dutch market saw its highest peak in the first months after the legalisation. Most players entered the market in the beginning, and growth tapered off in the following months.
One of the key characteristics of the Dutch online gambling industry is that not all operators entered the market at the same time. In the first weekend of legal online casinos, only nine casinos were first available. As more names trickled in, the available offer has expanded to around twenty casinos after a year and a half. For more information and an overview of the legal Dutch online casino’s, you can visit onlinecasinoground.nl.
Some casinos simply hit a delay with getting their licence from the Dutch gaming authority (Kansspelautoriteit), while others had to wait. Casinos that previously offered their services to Dutch players had a cool-down period, where they were banned from getting a licence for the first six months. That way, bona fide legal casinos had an advantage over former illegal casinos that nevertheless offered their services to Dutch players.
One of those casinos with a cool-down period was Unibet, former market leader in the Netherlands. This casino came online after the six month wait, and is currently on track to becoming market leader yet again. In September 2022, it estimated a fourth place in its market share, which rose to a third place in February 2023.
While Unibet is growing quickly and at a steady pace, its numbers point to a slower growth of the market overall, a suspicion that is confirmed by other parties.
Hot topics around iGaming
Controversies around the new market might contribute to the slow growth. Dutch lawmakers are working through a long list of appeals. Some appeals have proved successful already, like the expanded ban of role models in advertisements, a nearly-adopted ban on non-targeted ads overall, and the out phasing of sponsorships for sports clubs and events.
But the gambling industry in the Netherlands keeps drawing criticism and scrutiny by members of parliament. The latest proposal would impose a ‘two strikes’ system, where the gambling licence for a casino would be revoked after one repeated offense in advertising to players under 24 years of age.
Whatever the outcome of that proposal, it does illustrate the uphill battle online casinos face when it comes to further facilitating growth in the Dutch market.
Disclaimer: Play responsibly. Players must be over 18. For help visit https://www.gamcare.org.uk/.