(Image: David Izquierdo Roger / Alamy)

The gambling regulator for the Netherlands has revealed the nation’s aggregated gross online gaming revenues from sportsbooks and casino sites revenues for last year rose by 28% per annum to top €1.39 billion ($1.51 billion) as the total number of active accounts increased by 13% to stand at some 1.1 million.

Home to approximately 18 million people, the Netherlands legalized online casino gaming and sports betting in October 2021, with its Kansspelautoriteit watchdog having so far licensed over 30 iGaming domains including real money slot sites as well as well all other casino gaming options.

This state-run regulator is also responsible for informing government policy and legislation via the production of annual reports into the size, scope and popularity of the domestic market.

Comparable Constraint

In its sixth annual report on the Dutch iGaming market, the Kansspelautoriteit explained the country’s iGaming market sector grew slower last year than in 2022 when aggregated gross online gaming revenues swelled by 85% year-on-year to reach €1.08 billion ($1.17 billion) from 970,000 active accounts.

The regulator stated combined returns for the final six months of 2023 had increased by only 1% sequentially, with ‘the number of players who occasionally take a gamble remaining approximately the same’.

As iGaming aficionados in the Netherlands are permitted to utilize multiple accounts, the Kansspelautoriteit projects about a third of all online casino games were enjoyed last year by just 448,000 players.

For the final six months of 2023, the regulator also estimated the small country had about 726,000 active punters, which equated to some 5% of its entire adult population.

Declining Deficits

The Kansspelautoriteit furthermore estimated Dutch online gamblers lost an average of €958 ($1,041) during the final six months of 2023, which represented a decrease of 5.8% year-on-year. Nevertheless, it warned that young adults were overrepresented in this club, as those aged between 18 and 23 accounted for 22% of overall losses despite being only 9.5% of the wider population.

“This percentage was virtually the same in the previous monitoring report so the number of young adult players in the past year has not increased significantly,” read a statement from the Kansspelautoriteit.

“Young adults lose less money than players aged 24 and older; on average €52 ($56) per month.”

Unproductive Proscription

The figures from the Kansspelautoriteit seem to suggest the federal prohibition on untargeted gambling advertising enacted in July has had little impact, although the regulator stressed 90% of domestic play is today conducted through legal websites, which is above its stated 80% target.

“The report shows that the market has not experienced any noticeable contraction since the ban,” read the statement from the Kansspelautoriteit. “However, the number of visits to gambling websites by people who are not players has decreased significantly. People who have already played do not come less often so the advertising ban mainly affects people who do not yet play.”