Austria has taken a significant leap forward in ending the gambling monopoly that has presided over the country for almost 60 years.
It comes after there was unity from the country’s three political parties on a new framework for the gambling sector.
Austrian news outlet Kronen Zeitung, citing sources with an understanding of the negotiations, reported that the coalition government is eyeing October 2027 as the date to open up the market and end the monopoly held by Casinos Austria and its online subsidiary Win2Day.
As part of the gambling reform, politicians have included a ‘cooling-off period’ for operators that have previously targeted the Austrian market without a licence.
This means those who have been active in the market in the previous 18 months will be unable to apply for a licence, with the period extended to 24 months from 2030 onwards.
Prospective licensees will also be required to settle outstanding taxes and any player compensation rulings that they are liable for from previous years.
The decision to include a cooling-off period is nothing new, and was utilised by the Netherlands and Germany ahead of the opening of each country’s respective online gaming markets in 2021.
Operators that had targeted Dutch players before regulation were required not to do so for two years before being able to obtain a licence, leading to a delayed entry for brands such as PokerStars and bet365.
Meanwhile, operators had to comply with future rules in Germany ahead of the official opening of the market.
A long time in the making
Once implemented, the new laws will end one of the few remaining online gambling monopolies in Europe.
Win2Day has held the country’s only online gambling licence since the vertical was legalised in 2010. However, players in Austria have consistently been targeted by the black market, with channelisation rates estimated to sit at approximately 50%.
Though a move to liberalise the market, newcomers will be required to comply with a strict set of regulations.
Players will be restricted to a weekly deposit limit of €1,680, reduced to just €250 for players under the age of 26.
Stake limits will be set at €5 and maximum customer winnings set at €10,000. A previous draft version of the law had cut the proposed stake limit from €10 to €2. However, this drew strong criticism from stakeholders, leading to the latest compromise.
Alongside online gambling, 13 casino licences will also be available for operators, ending Casinos Austria’s monopoly on the land-based sector. Win2Day will keep its exclusive control of the Austrian lottery.
The shift to an open market after such a long period of a monopoly residing over the country. New operators in the market will be faced with a challenging roadmap in terms of gaining market share from the country’s main operator.
Finland also in on the action
Austria will not be the only European nation piquing the interest of operators in 2027, as Finland is also in the process of liberalising its market from 1 July 2027 – ending the exclusive control held by the state-owned operator Veikkaus.
According to the National Police Board of Finland, there has been strong interest in the market as the gambling administration has already received over 50 licence applications.
Once Finland’s iGaming market opens up next year, commercially licensed operators will be able to offer sports betting, online casino games, online slots and online money bingo in the country.
Similarly to Austria, Veikkaus will retain exclusive rights to operate the country’s lottery.
