Europe's Squeeze Tightens on Operators

France's Marketing Ultimatum

Start with France, where the ANJ just delivered the clearest warning yet. Operators had planned to spend €785 million on marketing in 2026, representing a staggering 25% increase from 2025. The ANJ said: Not so fast.

For the first time, the regulator imposed hard caps on promotional budgets, instructing operators not to exceed their declared spending under any circumstances. Violate that cap, and face targeted audits. The regulator specifically flagged concerns about "advertising saturation" and the "normalisation of gambling" during major sporting events like the World Cup in June and July.

Financial incentives now account for 60% of promotional spend, up 23 % year-on-year. Retention bonuses and cross-selling tactics (moving players between sports betting, poker, and casino verticals) are the targets. The ANJ warned several operators to scale back social media spending and retention offers. It's also coordinating with France's Advertising Standards Authority to prevent messaging that could appeal to young adults.

The World Cup generates over 20 % of annual marketing spend. But operators can't exploit it as freely as they once did. "Whistle-to-whistle" TV advertising bans are being proposed. Sponsorship rules are tightening. Loss limits for 18- to 25-year-olds are on the table.

This isn't gentle encouragement. This is regulatory enforcement through attrition.

The Pan-European Alliance

Then there's the seven-nation regulatory bloc: UK, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. In November 2025, they issued a joint statement pledging to share intelligence on illegal operators, pressure digital platforms to block unlicensed advertising, and coordinate enforcement action.

Spain didn't waste time. It immediately fined six illegal operators €30 million combined. The UK Gambling Commission issued £18.5 million in fines this year alone, including a £10 million penalty against Platinum Gaming Limited for money laundering and social responsibility failures.

Coordination matters because the borderless nature of online gambling makes unilateral action nearly useless. An operator banned in France simply relocates servers to Latvia and targets French players anyway. But seven regulators sharing data, cross-referencing investigations, and synchronising enforcement? That's exponentially harder to circumvent.

The Tax Vortex

Underneath the marketing crackdowns sits a tax story that's driving operators toward the exits. The UK raised taxes on online casinos and sports betting in November 2025. France introduced a 15 % marketing tax in July 2025, which contributed to promotional spending falling 8 % short of forecasts. Spain and Germany have similar measures in place.

The Betting and Gaming Council argues these tax increases drive customers to unregulated offshore sites, which is partially true. But it's also partially self-inflicted. Flutter Entertainment moved SkyBet's headquarters to Malta to avoid UK corporation tax and VAT. Entain's Ladbrokes and Coral are based in Gibraltar. William Hill, 888, and dozens of others operate from jurisdictions that minimise their European tax burden.

Licensed operators are essentially saying: we'll operate in your market, take your regulatory supervision, but base ourselves offshore to avoid your taxes. European governments are responding by making licensed operation so expensive and burdensome that the calculation changes.

What Operators Face in 2026

For major operators, 2026 means smaller headline bonuses, tighter promotional windows, and heavier compliance overhead. Marketing budgets will be scrutinised monthly. Retention tactics will be flagged. Cross-selling will be audited. Player loss limits for younger demographics are coming.

Smaller operators face extinction. If you can't invest in brand awareness, you can't compete against FanDuel, DraftKings, or Entain. France's budget caps and social media restrictions are deliberately designed to protect incumbent market share by preventing new entrants from buying their way in.

The irony is delicious: European regulators are simultaneously crushing illegal operators whilst making licensed operations so restrictive that the regulated/unregulated distinction becomes increasingly academic.

Opinion of Andrew Collins

“ Bottom line: Europe's 2026 playbook is clear. Squeeze marketing spend, raise taxes, coordinate enforcement, and accept that operators will move offshore. For players, it means fewer bonuses and stricter limits. For operators, it means choosing between lower margins in regulated markets or higher margins in unregulated ones. The middle ground is rapidly disappearing. ”