Dutch gambling regulator warns industry ahead of sports sponsorship ban from July 1

The Dutch gambling authority Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has issued a warning to licensed operators ahead of a nationwide ban on sports sponsorship by gambling firms, set to take effect on July 1, 2025.

The new rules will prohibit all forms of gambling-related sponsorship in sport, including shirt branding, team partnerships, player endorsements, and competition-level promotional deals. The ban will apply across all sports and marks the final phase of a broader crackdown on gambling advertising launched in July 2023.

“This law was drawn up to protect young adults and other vulnerable groups,” KSA Chairman Michel Groothuizen said. “You do that by preventing them from being exposed to gambling advertising, regardless of who the advertising comes from.”

The regulator emphasized it would be closely monitoring operator compliance in the lead-up to the deadline and promised “immediate enforcement action” against violations. “We at KSA will be very vigilant about that,” Groothuizen added.

KSA noted that operators have been unable to enter new sports sponsorship agreements since mid-2023. The delay in implementing the ban was designed to allow existing contracts to conclude and give sports organizations time to adjust.

The watchdog has already contacted online gambling providers to request details of ongoing sponsorship or promotional agreements. While KSA continues to consult with industry associations, it has pledged zero tolerance for attempts to circumvent the restrictions.

“In other countries with a similar ban, we see that gambling providers try to circumvent the ban in creative ways,” Groothuizen said. “As far as I’m concerned, that is not the case in the Netherlands.”

The sponsorship ban is the latest in a series of regulatory measures introduced by Dutch lawmakers since the regulated online gambling market opened in 2021. These include a ban on untargeted advertising, mandatory deposit limits, and increases to the gambling tax rate — which rose to 34.2% of gross gaming revenue in January and is set to reach 37.8% in 2026.

The tightening regulatory climate has prompted market exits from several operators, including Flutter-owned Tombola and LiveScore Bet. State-owned Holland Casino has also warned of operational downsizing.

Despite the mounting restrictions, a government-commissioned review of the Netherlands Online Gambling Act published in November 2024 concluded that existing player protection efforts had been “largely ineffective.” Further measures, including a potential ban on online slot machines, are reportedly under consideration.