Finland’s open betting market will launch on 1 July 2027, but with 13 months left there are still a lot of questions industry stakeholders want answering.

A long-running legislative process starting way back in 2022 culminated with Finland’s President, Alexander Stubb, signing the Gambling Bill into law in January 2025. The bill overturns the monopoly held by state-owned Veikkaus, introducing a mulit-licence market.

As it stands, there have been 28 licence applications so far, according to Pekka Ilmivalta. Head of Office atNordic Legal Finland, speaking on a Gaming in Finland webinar last week.

“Business plans are being prepared, media marketing plans and relations being built, sponsorships and incorporation of businesses and activities,” he said. “There is lots going on.”

Finnish media not in abundance for bookies

Ilmivalta expects there to be more than 50 licence applications by the time the market is ready to launch, while the industry is also getting more information on what requirements it can expect, with one more draft order from the National Police Board under consultation.

“We are expecting from the regular some advice and guidance in Q1 ‘27, but let’s see where it goes,” Ilmivalta said. “There is still a lot to do. On the other hand, there are other things to consider and prepare for in order to be ready in 13 months or so.”

Of these things to consider, marketing is a big one. Like any new market, Finland will see a gold rush in the early months – think the US during 2018-2020 and Brazil during 2025, albeit with a much smaller population.

However, marketing campaigns will not be permitted until the market launches. This does give the state-owned firms – Veikkaus and Paf, the latter the betting operator of the autonomous Aland Islands – a decent head start. 

Paf has already got marketing underway, having partnered with Formula 1 champion Kimi Räikkönen.

“We have had a lot of discussion with Finnish media, marketing operators, around sponsorship opportunities,” said Ilmivalta.

“As we are expecting 50 operators to enter the market there is not too much media space and interesting sponsorship opportunities available. That’s another perspective to this. If you want to get the best ones from the media and sponsorship market, you should be acting.”

Have a plan if you want over the Finnish line

As with any new market, launching in Finland in 2027 will carry some risk. There is every chance that not every operator will still be there in 2028, whether due to failing to compete, or perhaps due to some regulatory infractions.

Another issue is regulatory clarity. While the legislation has been approved, complete with its requirements around marketing and other areas, some areas are not entirely decided upon – like player protection, a topic which has drawn sharp divides between the industry and various charity and health organisations.

“I’m a bit worried with all the uncertainty about the technical specifications, and waiting it out until the end might mean you are waiting too long,” said Niklas Bondestam, Chief Operating Officer of Ubetec, a gaming tech firm based in the city of Espoo.

“You might have to take a small risk and start early, and hope that your solution is correct. Even if it’s a marathon, it might be that you don’t hit the three hour mark. That’s worrying – when will we get all the final details in?”

Bondestam’s recommendation is simple – companies interested in the Finnish market need to start preparing now. “Start to think about what you need to do,” he said. 

“Have a plan, so you don’t just think about what you need to do when you get the final paper. Have a plan, and start immediately.”

Planning meets patience

Part of this planning should include familiarisation with the specifics of legislation – the specifics that we know, at least. 

Clémence Barret, Head of Direct Sales Gaming and Online at French IT service firm

Docaposte, recommended that operators take note of Finland’s requirements around payer transactions data.

“Do not bother about the technical requirements now, but you need at least to understand the main picture of what it means for you as an operator,” she said. “What it means is that the operators will need to have a strong data infrastructure behind their operations.”

If there’s one key takeaway from last week’s webinar, it’s this – make sure you are planning, but also make sure you are not acting too quickly. There is a fine balance to be had.

Hammering home the importance of product planning, Jaakko Soininen, Managing Director of iGaming tech firm Finnplay, said: “My biggest highlight or recommendation towards the operators is to really plan the product at this moment. The tech will be there kind of to support, the battles are more or less lost on the product side, so invest in there.”

But reminding people not to rush in, Ilmivalta warned against any pre-emptive marketing moves by interested operators even if this means that Veikkaus and Paf will have a head start in terms of visibility.

“If you start full scale marketing times, 100% they will be after you,” he said, referring to the authorities.