Dutch regulator says licensed sites took 59 percent of gambling revenue in 2025, up from 54 percent
The Dutch gambling regulator's latest monitoring report estimates that licensed operators captured about 59% of total gaming revenue in 2025, up from 54% a year earlier. Its first-half 2026 figures put licensed online revenue at roughly 670 million euros, and suggest players on unlicensed sites lose more on average.
South Africa is in the reverse position: there is no licensed online casino market at all, so every player on an online casino is using an offshore operator. The Dutch report is a data point on what regulation can and cannot do. Even in a mature licensed market the regulator still estimates a sizeable unlicensed share, and it says that estimate is uncertain. For South African players the practical lesson is that a licence from somewhere does not make a site safe, and that unlicensed play can carry heavier losses with fewer protections.
The headline figures
iGaming Business reported on 30 October 2026 on the Dutch Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) monitoring report, which covers 2025 and the first half of 2026. The regulator estimates the licensed market took about 59% of total gross gaming yield in 2025, compared with 54% the year before.
For January to June 2026, licensed operators generated around 670 million euros, roughly 110 million a month, up about 11% on the previous six months. Casino games made up about 73% of that and sports betting about 24%, which the KSA links in part to the men's World Cup.
Illegal market estimates
The KSA says measuring unlicensed gambling is hard. It combined panel survey data with search-volume estimates. For the first half of 2026 it estimates about 20,000 people a month gambled only with unlicensed operators and another 10,000 used both kinds. Depending on method, 94% to 97% of players used licensed providers. The regulator stresses the estimates are uncertain and says it is still refining them.
Because a small number of players appears to account for a larger share of illegal revenue, the report suggests players on illegal sites may lose considerably more on average.
Accounts, losses and young adults
Licensed operators reported an average of 1.48 million active accounts a month, but panel data indicated the number of people gambling did not rise, which hints at more people holding several accounts. Average monthly loss per account was 75 euros, and a separate estimate that adjusts for multiple accounts put it at 137 euros per person. People aged 18 to 23 made up about 22% of accounts while being roughly 9.2% of adults.
The self-exclusion register had about 120,200 registrations by 31 July 2026, and online advertising by licensed operators fell by around a third.
What it means for South African players
- There is no South African licence for online casinos, so check our South Africa legal guide before depositing anywhere.
- Look at who actually licenses and audits a site, and read our methodology to see how we treat unverified claims.
- Keep to a budget you can afford to lose. Gambling is entertainment with real risk, not income.
What to watch next
The KSA says it will keep refining its illegal-market estimates. Watch the next monitoring report and how the Netherlands handles its proposed advertising restrictions, since both shape how other regulators judge whether licensing is working.