Pragmatic Play blocks games at illegal gambling sites: what is the situation in Belgium? 

Clicking on a familiar game only to see a short notification instead of spinning reels: ‘Not available in your region’. According to CasinoNieuws.nl, Dutch visitors encountered this message at several online casinos operating without a Dutch license when trying to open a game by Pragmatic Play. 

For Belgian players, this raises a logical question: are those games disappearing here as well? Available Belgian reporting shows a different picture. Pragmatic Play remains present within the offering of Belgian casinos, including Dice versions of well-known titles. The notifications reported in the Netherlands do not mean that the game developer has withdrawn from Belgium. 

However, that difference warrants a precise explanation. Availability with Belgian licensed operators says nothing about whether those same games remain accessible from Belgium at illegal casinos. The consulted sources offer no conclusive answer on that point. 

A notification highlighting the difference between two markets 

The Dutch reporting began on May 28, 2026. The CasinoNieuws.nl report on the regional blockade at Pragmatic Play described how games at many unlicensed gambling sites appeared to no longer be accessible from a Dutch IP address. 

The news outlet later added an important nuance: the blockade did not appear to apply to everyone or across all illegal gambling sites. The article, updated on September 9, therefore does not serve as proof of a complete shutdown of the Dutch illegal market. 

Furthermore, the underlying trigger remained unknown in the reports. There was no confirmation that Pragmatic Play implemented the measure following contact with the Dutch Gaming Authority (Kansspelautoriteit). Nor was there an official statement from the provider specifying exactly which websites, games, or players fell under the restriction. 

That does not make the news unimportant. A casino can keep its website accessible while a portion of its game selection no longer works. For visitors coming specifically for those games, the site’s appeal changes significantly. 

Belgium: Pragmatic Play remains widely available 

In Belgium, Pragmatic Play games remain available at several licensed online casinos. The provider therefore continues to have a visible presence in the offering available to Belgian players. 

At PepperMill Casino, for example, players can access Gates of Olympus, as well as Gates of PepperMill, a version specifically linked to the casino’s own branding. At StarCasino, players can also find titles such as StarCasino Bonanza. 

These examples show that Pragmatic Play games are still clearly present on the Belgian market, including through adapted or customised versions created for certain operators. 

The Belgian situation therefore differs from what is being seen in the Netherlands. Dutch news mainly concerns restrictions affecting certain casinos that do not hold a Dutch licence. In Belgium, Pragmatic Play remains available through operators active on the regulated market. 

The two situations are therefore not contradictory: a provider can restrict access to its games in one country or with certain operators while continuing to offer its titles in another regulated market. Game availability therefore depends not only on the country, but also on the licence and regulatory framework under which each casino operates. 

Why Belgian players frequently encounter Dice versions 

Anyone following international casino news recognizes titles like Gates of Olympus and Sweet Bonanza. In Belgian publications, the word ‘Dice’ is regularly appended. That detail reveals something about the unique development of the Belgian market. 

In our interview with Henk Wolff on game providers in the Belgian market, the casino consultant described how Pragmatic Play and others entered the market via B+ licensed operators. According to Wolff, providers began adapting their games specifically for that market. 

His analysis helps explain why the Belgian selection is not simply a carbon copy of a foreign game catalog. A recognizable theme can return in a modified execution. Statements regarding game rules or payout percentages must therefore be evaluated against the specific game version in question. 

This is also why a sweeping statement such as ‘Pragmatic Play no longer works’ is too imprecise. Which country is involved? Which operator? And which version of a game? Without that information, distinct situations are easily conflated. 

A well-known game title is not a license 

A Pragmatic Play logo may offer recognition. However, in itself, it does not indicate whether a casino operates legally in Belgium. The game developer and the casino operator perform distinct roles. 

The provider supplies the games. The casino offers them to players and manages account details, among other things. When evaluating an operator, the relevant factor is the Belgian license, not just the name appearing on a game’s loading screen. 

In our explanation of the difference between legal and illegal online casinos in Belgium, this licensing issue is central. The official supervisory source is the Belgian Gaming Commission’s license overview, in which the various license categories are published. 

A foreign license does not replace the mandatory Belgian license. Nor does technical accessibility automatically make a website legal. A game that opens without an error message therefore provides no answer to the most important question: is this operator permitted to offer its games in Belgium? 

What Belgium can learn from the Dutch reports 

The Dutch situation raises a broader question: who can make the illegal game offering less accessible? Regulators focus on operators, but the companies delivering the games can also play a role. 

If a provider genuinely restricts access, it can eliminate part of the supply that brings visitors back. That represents a potential outcome of such a measure, not a proven result of this specific blockade. The reports do not reveal how many players stopped or switched as a result. 

For Belgium, it remains primarily a topic to monitor. A similar restriction with unlicensed operators could be relevant for protecting the Belgian market. However, the consulted sources do not confirm that Pragmatic Play has introduced such a broad measure for Belgium. 

National protection frameworks also differ. Belgium utilizes EPIS, whereas the Netherlands uses Cruks. Our comparison of EPIS and Cruks as systems for player exclusion elaborates on that context. A regional game block and an exclusion register serve different functions: one restricts the availability of games, while the other manages access for excluded players. 

The same provider, a different Belgian reality 

The notification ‘Not available in your region’ demonstrates that an international game brand does not need to deliver the exact same offering everywhere. Availability can vary by country, website, and game version. 

For Belgium, the evidence-based finding is that Pragmatic Play remains present in the local market. The Dutch reports provide no grounds to state that Belgian players have lost access to the provider overall. 

Whether Belgian IP addresses encounter the same restrictions at illegal casinos remains unanswered based on available information. That would require separate checks or a clear statement from the provider. Until then, the Belgian narrative requires its own framing: Pragmatic Play remains present here, while the scope and trigger of the Dutch blockades continue to raise questions.