Anna Johnson, President and CEO of Svenska Spel, states that the group is highly supportive of the government’s plans to strengthen the Gambling Act with new measures against illegal operators.

Johnson welcomed the memorandum authored by Financial Markets Secretary Niklas Wykman and Marcus Isgren, Chair of the Swedish National Board for Consumer Disputes, which proposes long-awaited changes to the Gambling Act of 2018. 

The memorandum sets out structural reforms to expand the scope of the law and redefine how authorities tackle unlicensed gambling targeting Swedish consumers.

A central proposal is the replacement of the existing “directorial criterion” with a new “participant criterion”. This shift ensures that unlicensed operators will fall under Swedish law if they allow Swedes to play on their platforms, even if they are not actively targeting the market. 

The amendment further places direct obligations on IT and payment providers to block services that enable Swedish customers to access or fund unlicensed gambling sites.

Backing amendments, Anna Johnson, commented: “Today, Commissioner Marcus Isgren presented changes to the Gambling Act aimed at limiting illegal gambling. The change is expected to further strengthen the Swedish gambling market and protect consumers against the unlicensed operators who still target Swedish players.”

She added: “The investigator’s proposals are long-awaited and welcome. We have long been concerned that the regulations surrounding illegal gambling need to be tightened. This is about improved protection for consumers, but also about safeguarding trust in the entire Swedish gambling market. That gambling should take place in a responsible and sustainable manner is the very foundation of our operations.”

Svenska Spel’s support joins that of the wider industry, represented by the Swedish Trade Association for Online Gaming (BOS), which has consistently pushed for tighter measures against unlicensed operators.

BOS welcomed the memorandum, calling it a crucial step in strengthening the licence system.

The trade body has been lobbying for this change since the 2019 re-regulation, underscoring that stronger enforcement is essential to improve channelisation and ensure the integrity of Sweden’s gambling market.

The memorandum will now move to the Riksdag for its final authorisation. If passed, the new framework will take effect on 1 January 2027, allowing time for regulators, operators, and supporting industries to adapt to the updated legal landscape.

Closing her statement, Johnson further underlined the need for ongoing measures: “It is absolutely necessary to continue with more measures to combat illegal gambling. DNS blocking of illegal gambling sites is a natural next step to take. It would further strengthen the Swedish licensing market as well as the protection of Swedish consumers.”