Netherlands Sees 100,000 More Online Betting Accounts in 2026

Over the first half of 2026, the Netherlands has seen a significant increase in the number of online gambling accounts. The small European country has seen 100,000 more accounts being created, with the total number now being just below 1.5 million. Dutch Online Gambling Accounts Increase by Over 100,000 Online casinos maintained their dominance in the legal gambling market, accounting for 75% of players’ losses. Sports betting made up the remaining 25%, marking an increase compared with the second half of last year. Losses incurred by players at licensed gambling operators increased by 11% year-on-year, reaching EUR 670 million (about $750 million) in the first half of 2026. Monthly revenues from sports betting tend to fluctuate more considerably than those generated by online casinos. According to the Dutch Gambling Regulator (KSA), this is partly attributable to major sporting events, such as the European Championship and the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and partly to the fact that sports betting gross gaming revenue is heavily influenced by a relatively small number of matches. The illegal gambling market also gained ground relative to legal operators last year, but this trend now appears to have leveled off, at least temporarily. In the first half of this year, legal operators accounted for 59% of total gambling losses, up from 54% in the second half of last year. As the number of gambling accounts started to rise in the Netherlands earlier this year, the country even considered heavy restrictions on gambling advertising in an attempt to slow down that trend. Opponents of the idea said that such a move would only benefit the illegal sector. Why Are We Seeing This Surge in Online Accounts? According to the KSA, the aforementioned FIFA World Cup is one of the key factors in the increase. However, another contributor to this trend is also the deposit limit introduced two years ago, according to the regulator. Some gamblers could be opening accounts with multiple operators to maintain their preferred betting levels despite the restriction. The KSA suggests that deposit limits may explain the increase in gambling accounts, particularly as the number of monthly active gamblers remained unchanged at about 490,000. It should also be noted that, while legal operators hold the majority of the market, the other quarter of it is held by illegal websites. The KSA is taking several measures to tackle this problem. Last week, it issued a record fine of EUR 37 million ($41.4 million) to EOD Code SRL. However, of the more than EUR 88 million ($98.5 million) in penalties imposed over the past five and a half years, the KSA has collected only about EUR 1.5 million ($1.67 million). According to the regulator, issuing fines is considered a last resort. It explained that it is also exploring more immediate enforcement measures, including taking websites offline and blocking payments. Cooperation with hosting companies and banks to implement these measures has been underway since last year, KSA said.