Spanish gambling will pivot to a ‘new system of accountability’ for player protection built on new commands for licence holders to identify risks and intervene on gambling threats and prevent fallouts.
The message came from Mikel Arana, Director General of the DGOJ, as he was presenting the “Juego Seguro 2030” (Safe Play) programme for Spanish gambling, which has been co-designed alongside the Advisory Council of Responsible Gambling.
The programme will be implemented from 2026, through to 2030. It forms part of the DGOJ’s mission to ‘redefine a new regulatory philosophy’ and enhance both player protections and gambling environments.
Tackling problem gambling head-on
From 2026 onwards, the DGOJ will develop Safe Play initiatives based on the ‘core structure of comprehensive protection’, which it is confident will uphold ‘safe environments, and the analysis and diagnosis of harms and threats’.
The programme will not be applied as a legislative decree. However, the DGOJ will apply the programme to support the ongoing changes on Royal Decrees on Spanish Gambling, which were first adopted in 2020, for advertising and, in 2023, for gambling environments
The governance of the Safe Play programme will prioritise six overarching objectives:
1. To ensure a measurable reduction in gambling-related harms (currently at 1.5% of adult population as of 2024)
2. To enhance player protection mechanisms (via preventative tools and the use of algorithmic modules)
3. To improve the intervention of harms via the earliest detection
4. To prioritise the protection of youth and vulnerable players
5. To safeguard all gambling environments
The six principles will support DGOJ’s mandate to secure new evidence that supports both scientific research and data-driven policy development across the gambling industry.
The philosophical and systemic change sought by the DGOJ increases emphasis on regulatory scrutiny of operators, their data and game design in 2026.
As such, Spanish licences will incorporate a “new accountability on player protection” that will be treated as a systemic responsibility embedded across the entire value chain of gambling – spanning “operators, product design, data monitoring and customer interaction”.
Arana told stakeholders: “The objective is to move towards a model in which protection does not rely solely on player behaviour, but is integrated across the entire system, from product design to how operators use data.”
Under this model, safeguarding is no longer confined to player behaviour, but instead becomes a function of how gambling services are structured, marketed and delivered.
As outlined by the DGOJ, the new framework will seek to place “vulnerable participants at the centre of protective measures”, reinforcing a system in which protection is built into the overall design of gambling environments, rather than left to individual choice.
System and philosophy change
To implement this shift, the DGOJ will introduce a new layer of technical oversight across three core pillars.
The DGOJ will expand its scrutiny of game design and product mechanics, assessing how structural features of games influence intensity, spend and the potential for compulsive play.
The authority believes that “structural environments and systems can influence play”, highlighting the need to evaluate how product design contributes to risk.
On licences, the framework will place data processing and behavioural monitoring at the centre of supervision. Operators will be required to apply standardised risk-detection systems to identify harmful patterns in real time.
As the DGOJ states, ‘all operators must apply the same parameters to determine which customers exhibit risky behaviours’, an action detailed as a duty of care for licence holders.
Thirdly, the DGOJ will strengthen the promotion and integration of safer gambling tools and controlled environments. Player protection mechanisms – such as deposit limits, self-exclusion systems and behavioural alerts – will be embedded more directly into the customer journey, supported by broader oversight of digital environments.
The DGOJ has emphasised the need to ‘to reduce the risk of the emergence of risky gambling behaviours… or to minimise their negative effects’.
As such, the DGOJ has signalled that Spain’s next regulatory phase will be defined by accountability in safe gambling, with operators expected to demonstrate how their technologies, data systems and product design actively prevent harm, rather than simply respond to it.
Signing off on the programme’s directives, Arana detailed: “Player protection cannot depend solely on the individual, but on the active responsibility of operators, products and environments.
“This new era demands measurable accountability, which operators must demonstrate through data how they prevent harm.”
