France’s leading online gambling trade association AFJEL has escalated its campaign against the rise of black-market gambling, urging authorities and media to confront the growing risks of an unregulated online casino sector that continues to erode consumer protection and state revenues.
The warning marks a renewed call from AFJEL for the French government to end the structural liabilities of the country’s gambling framework by regulating online casino gaming (iCasino) — a reform the association has pushed for since the relaunch of France’s regulated online gambling market in 2011.
The trade body has now taken its campaign directly into the French mainstream press, with its PwC-commissioned study published by Le Parisien and Libération, two of the country’s most prominent national newspapers.
According to the findings, 5.4 million French players are now active on unlicensed gambling sites, surpassing the 3.5 million users in the legal market and representing a 35% surge in two years. PwC estimates that the illegal market generated €2 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) in 2025, causing fiscal losses of more than €1.2 billion annually.
AFJEL warns that France faces a “digital sovereignty crisis” as unregulated offshore operators — often tied to criminal networks — continue to capture consumers through aggressive social media marketing, oversized bonuses, and influencer sponsorships, all while avoiding taxes and player-safety obligations.
“These illicit platforms lure customers with outsized inducements, flood Facebook and Google with ads, and even manipulate search engines to make themselves look legitimate,” said Nicolas Béraud, CEO of Betclic Group and President of AFJEL.
“The magnitude of this problem proves that prohibition is not protection. The only solution is a regulated and controlled iCasino offer that restores trust, protects players, and ensures fair competition.”
AFJEL maintains that the continuing ban on online casinos represents a “structural liability” for France — one that undermines consumer safety and deprives the state of significant tax revenue.
“France cannot allow a sector that could be safely regulated to remain dominated by illegal sites,” Béraud continued. “We are demanding a swift and decisive response — to end this French anomaly and restore order to the market.”
The Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) — France’s gambling regulator — has adopted a cautious stance, warning that any potential opening of the iCasino market must be “carefully considered given the highly addictive nature of such products.”
While the ANJ has expanded enforcement powers and blocked over 1,000 illegal websites in 2025, AFJEL argues that regulatory measures alone are not enough.
“Despite ANJ’s commitment, the illegal market continues to grow,” Béraud added. “This is no longer a question of enforcement — it’s a question of political will.”
