Finland Confirms 12 Online Betting Licences

The Finnish National Police Board said, in a statement responding to an information request from iGB, that 12 companies have been granted licences to operate in the country's online betting market, which is set to open. Wildz Group and HipposATG, among others, had previously announced that they had secured licences, but this is the first time the regulator has officially confirmed the licence approvals.

Finland is liberalising a system that was previously run as a state monopoly. Online betting will open to private operators on 1 July 2027. The licence application process is ongoing and is being managed by the National Police Board.

According to the Board's data as of 26 October, 79 licence applications have been submitted. So far, 12 licences have been issued and no applications have been rejected. The incumbent state monopoly, Veikkaus, does not yet appear on the list. The company has also applied in order to compete in the liberalised market.

Veikkaus is expected to have an advantage when the market opens, thanks to its brand recognition and extensive customer database. The company will retain its monopoly on lotteries, scratch cards and land-based gaming machines. In online betting, it will compete with private companies.

As one of the last countries in Europe to move away from a monopoly model, Finland's decision to open its market has attracted strong interest from operators. According to H2 Gambling Capital, the country's total estimated gross gambling revenue for 2026 is EUR 1.9 billion, with roughly 81 percent coming from online channels. Finland has one of the highest per capita gambling expenditures in the world. While other European countries have been tightening rules and raising taxes, Finland is described as having a mature regulatory regime that enjoys stable political support and is generally well received.