Netherlands: Do 95% play in legal online casinos?

According to a recent study on the development of the Dutch online gambling market, 19 out of 20 players play in legal online casinos. The Dutch government has set itself the target of having "only" 16 out of 20 players in the legal online gambling market. So can the government now put all canalisation plans on ice, as the target has already been exceeded?

It was only in March of this year that we at GambleJoe reported on the controversial deposit limit of 5.35 euros per day for young players. Despite such player protection measures, the Dutch government is clearly succeeding in keeping the majority of online players in the legal market. At least that is the result of the "Online Gambling Barometer 2024", which was commissioned by the Dutch Online Gambling Association (NOGA).

NOGA: 95% of gambling fans play in licensed online casinos

The "Online Gambling Barometer 2024" comes to the conclusion that around 95% of Dutch gamblers already play in legal online casinos. This means that only one in 20 players would be active in an illegal online casino without a Dutch licence.

However, NOGA Director Peter-Paul de Goeij pointed out in a statement that there are currently still around 90,000 Dutch people playing in illegal online casinos. His aim is of course to bring these players into the legal online gambling market. It is interesting to note that we at GambleJoe already reported over a year ago that, according to GGL, 95% of users in Germany use legal sports betting providers.

Many high-risk gamblers do not want to provide proof of income

The "Online Gambling Barometer" provides another interesting finding. According to this, more than one in two high-risk gamblers is not prepared to provide proof of income to the online casino. As a result, these players often resort to illegal online casinos where no or less stringent control mechanisms exist.

In addition, 4 out of 10 players do not accept strict deposit limits. These players would also be more likely to resort to illegal offers if there were strict legal requirements. It was only at the end of May that we at GambleJoe asked ourselves whether the gambling tax in the Netherlands could soon amount to 37%.

It is also interesting to note that the Dutch House of Representatives voted in favour of a complete ban on slots and gambling advertising back in April. A complete ban on virtual slot machines could of course lead to players switching to the "black market", where they could continue to access slots.

Conclusion

According to the latest "Online Gambling Barometer", 95% of Dutch gambling fans play in legal online casinos. This means that the government's channelling target of 80% has already been achieved. It is questionable how valid the figure of 95% actually is. In view of the player protection measures that also exist in the Netherlands, a not inconsiderable proportion of players are still likely to be in illegal online casinos.

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