Dutch gambling accounts rise by half in six months

The KSA says that the strong growth “requires attention” as player accounts approach 900,000.

The Netherlands.- The Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has published its fourth online gambling monitoring report since the Netherlands’ regulated igaming market launched in October 2021. The report reveals that the number of player accounts rose by 52.6 per cent in the six months to January 2023.

The number of player accounts in January was 859,000, up from 563,000 in July 2022. Meanwhile, gross gambling revenue from the market rose by 37.7 per cent year-on-year from €90m in January 2022 to €124m.

The report also provided a break down of who is participating in online gambling in the Netherlands, reporting that 21 per cent of active accounts in January – 184,000 accounts – belonged to young people aged 18 to 24. This age group has been identified by the KSA as requiring particular protection.

The average loss for this age group was €54 per month, compared to €142 for other players. Meanwhile, the Netherlands’ recently updated Cruks self-exclusion register had 38,000 sign-ups this month (April 2023), an increase of 65.2 per cent from September 2022. Operators’ consultations against Cruks reached a peak during the Qatar World Cup in November 2022 with 38 million checks. There were 31 million checks in January, with 90 per cent coming from online gaming operators.

As for advertising, the number of online advertisements rose by 398,000 year-on-year to 481,000 in January 2023. A ban on untargeted gambling advertising will enter force on July 1.

KSA chairman René Jansen said: “This fourth monitoring report shows growth in the market for online games of chance, as we previously predicted. This is a development that requires all of our attention. Providers of games of chance must take up their duty of care firmly and intervene in a timely manner to protect players in order to realise that safe environment.”