Denmark Celebrates a Decade of Regulated Gambling

Denmark celebrates the 10th anniversary of its liberated gambling industry, and the European nation shows excellent market improvements. The Danish regulator, Spillemyndigheden, published statistics on the country's last ten years of gambling revenues and commented on the satisfactory results in its jurisdiction.

Since the liberalisation of its gambling industry in 2012, Danes increasingly moved toward licensed operators, and today a small minority choose offshore providers. The statistics also show that since the regulation of online gambling came into effect, iGaming revenues have doubled.

The regulator commends the region and industry on successful channelisation as it looks forward to a stable industry in the future.

 Growth and Stability

Although Danish punters had local options before 2012, the country offered state-owned operators the advantage of no outside competition. Thanks to a preference and demand for greater variety, the Danish government launched a regulated gambling market in 2012 and opened its borders for foreign operators to apply for local licenses. 

Ten years ago, the market opened with 45 online casino operators on the list of licensed providers, and after a decade of competition and stabilisation, 35 remain consistent. Statistics show a decline in licensed providers during and after the 2020 pandemic, with a fractional recovery in 2021. Spillemyndiheden believes the operator figures prove the attractive and competitive nature of the Danish gambling market.

Although the land-based industry experienced a loss over the past ten years, online gambling and sports betting experienced marked increases. Remote casino revenues ended at DKK 1.6 billion in 2012 and grew to DKK 3.3 billion in 2021. Online betting revenues also increased by 53% from 2012 to 2021. 

Denmark remains one of the few countries with a more liberal approach to gambling regulations. For instance, operators may advertise their services on national television channels. The jurisdiction does not stipulate a maximum number of operators, and providers must only comply with the regulatory requirements to obtain a license. 

 Danes Prefer Regulated Options

When the country moved from a state monopoly gambling industry to a regulated market with privately owned gambling platforms, it aimed for greater channelisation, resulting in better consumer protection. The reports indicate tremendous success on this front, with a 90% preference for legal operators. 

In 2012, approximately 40% of all Danish gamblers used local gambling services, and reports show that by 2021 this number increased to 90%. This places Denmark in the top 5 regulated EU regions that offer legal online gambling. Although the number of suppliers changed slightly in the past two years, more players from the country moved their wagering to licensed operators. Because this means better player protection and higher tax revenues for the government, the region will likely continue at its current momentum and game plan.

Besides getting better gambling options when the Danish government liberalised the industry, gamblers also received better assistance with compulsive gambling struggles through a national self-exclusion register, ROFUS. As of January 2022, more than 33,000 Danes have registered on the service to gain help from the self-exclusion benefits. 

 A Success Story

Denmark is one of the most liberal gambling jurisdictions, yet gamblers have not taken to excessive wagering since the regulated market launched. The regulator's research concluded that although Danes' gambling increased slightly in the last decade, the percentage of GGR remained stable. This is because Danes also became wealthier during the previous 10 years.

Somehow it seems like the Danish region found the secret recipe without limiting operators unnecessarily. Players continuously move from offshore to licensed operators, making Denmark's liberal approach one to consider in other markets.