In 2025, Denmark's gambling authority took decisive action by blocking 334 illegal gambling websites, marking a significant shift in the country's gambling landscape. Online casinos have now surpassed lotteries to become the dominant segment, fueled by a growing trend towards digital and mobile gaming.
The Danish Gambling Authority, known as Spillemyndigheden, detailed these enforcement actions in its annual report for 2025. The court-ordered blocks were part of a broader enforcement initiative that utilized proactive searches, data analytics, and public tips to identify illegal platforms.
Collaboration with the Danish Tax Authority's anti-fraud unit led to investigations into 695 potentially unlawful sites. Additionally, 36 websites either removed or altered their gambling offerings following regulatory intervention. A comprehensive channelization report is expected to be released in 2026.
Online gambling represented a staggering 73% of Denmark's total gross gaming revenue in 2025, a rise from 70% in 2024 and a significant increase from just 33% in 2012. Online casinos alone generated DKK 4.31 billion (approximately $660 million), accounting for 38% of the market, and reflecting a year-on-year growth of 12.1%, or DKK 465 million ($71 million). This figure has more than doubled since 2012. Notably, mobile devices contributed 73% of online gambling revenue in 2025, compared to just 27% in 2012.
Spillemyndigheden has also updated its collaboration with Teleindustrien, the association representing Danish internet service providers. This new agreement allows for the blocking of mirror or clone sites without needing a new court order if a previous ruling has already deemed the original site illegal.
After the blocking of 178 sites in June 2025, third-party traffic analysis indicated a 34% decline in visits to these sites over the subsequent six months, although some blocked domains did not experience a noticeable drop in traffic.
The enforcement efforts were bolstered by Gambling Package 1, introduced by the Danish government on October 24, 2025. This package enhanced protections for children, young adults, and vulnerable players, expanded the authority's powers to block referral and affiliate sites directing users to unlicensed operators, and extended restrictions on facilitation activities.
Furthermore, the package funded a digital monitoring tool to oversee gambling-related marketing across various digital platforms and implemented a ban on gambling advertisements during live sports broadcasts, effective from 10 minutes before an event until 10 minutes after it concludes.
Spillemyndigheden also noted a rise in illegal gambling promotions via mobile applications, social media, and streaming services. The authority has established formal complaint processes with Apple and Google to expedite the removal of illicit apps, while licensed operators can now directly report brand misuse on Meta platforms to facilitate quicker content removal.
In addition to online enforcement, land-based operations continued in 2025, with the authority participating in 25 investigations related to illegal gambling machines and betting terminals. Gross gaming revenue from land-based casinos fell by 5.6% to DKK 378 million ($57.74 million), representing 3% of the overall market, while the newly liberalized land-based bingo sector generated DKK 30 million ($4.58 million), accounting for less than 1% of total gambling revenue.