This week, the Danish government introduced a bill outlining its stringent gambling reforms that are set to roll out in phases between January and October 2027. Notably, the new marketing restrictions will impose a whistle-to-whistle ban on betting advertisements during live sports, which will take effect in July 2027.
Last October, a series of robust regulations, called Spilpakken 1, shook the gambling industry. The focus of this package is on tightening marketing rules, improving oversight of unregulated gambling, revising land-based gaming laws, and adjusting taxation frameworks.
On October 7, Minister for Taxation and Growth Jakob Engel-Schmidt presented the bill to the parliament, coinciding almost perfectly with the one-year anniversary of the package's initial announcement.
The bill lays out several pivotal policies. For instance, it prohibits gambling advertisements from targeting individuals under 18 years old or featuring anyone younger than 25. Additionally, ads will be banned on public transport and in areas within 200 meters of schools and youth education institutions. Furthermore, there will be a comprehensive ban on gambling ads during live sports broadcasts, which spans ten minutes before a game starts until ten minutes after it concludes. This ban will extend to live betting odds displayed on screens and streaming platforms.
The Danish state is projected to lose DKK15 million (approximately $2.25 million) in 2027 because of the live sports ad prohibition, with losses expected to rise to DKK25 million in subsequent years. The regulator anticipates losing around DKK1-2 million in fees as a result of this restriction.
Under the new regulations, all license holders, except for small charitable land-based lotteries, will be obliged to monitor player behavior continuously and intervene promptly if signs of gambling issues are detected.
The Danish Gambling Authority (Spillemyndigheden) is set to receive enhanced powers that allow for without-court inspections to probe into suspected illegal gambling activities. The legislation classifies unauthorized gambling provision as a criminal offense, punishable by fines or imprisonment for up to one year in severe cases. Moreover, marketing efforts for unlicensed gambling will be criminalized, with fines scaling according to the size and annual gross gaming revenue of companies involved.
A significant update within the bill involves a revision of the licensing system for land-based retail operators; the previous "bestyrer" approval system will be supplanted by new licenses known as "forhandlere" across various games such as lotteries, bingo, betting, casino games, and gaming machines.
Defined roles for gambling establishments are also altered, with physical separation required for different types of venues and a mandate that staff must be present during operating hours. Additionally, minors will be barred from entering these facilities, and certain high-paced games will have restricted operating hours from 7 AM to midnight. All novel or combined game licensing will require explicit approval from regulators, following assessments of their impact on responsible gambling, market implications, and potential conflicts with existing lottery products.
When Spilpakken 1 was announced, Morten Rønde, managing partner at Nordic Legal, expressed that he was shocked by the package. He remarked that there was no empirical backing showing these proposals would effectively reduce gambling addiction.
While a complete ban on advertising was considered at one juncture, Rønde acknowledged that views in favor of stricter gambling advertisements persist among several political parties in Denmark.
His comments indicate that the current bill replaces a previous version, L-127, which was rendered obsolete due to the elections, yet essentially maintains the same content.
