Why the gambling industry cannot do without problem players
Many gambling companies get their biggest profits from a small group of players who spend too much money. This is no accident. The industry has quietly adjusted to this for years.
Many gambling companies get their biggest profits from a small group of players who spend too much money. This is no accident. The industry has quietly adjusted to this for years.
On 29 April 2025, the Medan District Court sentenced Indah Siska Sari, a 20-year-old student from the Langkat regency, to two and a half years in prison and a fine of 50 million Indonesian rupiahs (around €2,600) for promoting online gambling on social networks.
The world of online gambling has just witnessed a historic moment: one lucky player has won the colossal sum of €1,368,013 thanks to the SOFTSWISS Prime Network Jackpot.
On 28 April 2025, Federal Judge Madeline Cox Arleo handed down a controversial decision: the Borgata casino and its parent company, MGM Resorts International, are not legally obliged to prevent or interrupt the gambling activities of people suffering from addiction.
The sports betting industry is undergoing unprecedented expansion, with profits soaring and bets breaking records. However, the question remains: have bookmaker advertisements become too intrusive? In an environment where advertising campaigns are omnipresent, more and more voices are being raised against this phenomenon.
Last March, Rick ‘Serpent’ Broers, a well-known Dutch YouTuber, launched a citizens’ initiative that quickly gained momentum: a petition to ban the Postcode Lottery, or Nationale Postcode Loterij, in its […]
Two Ukrainians have been sentenced to 15 months in prison for orchestrating a sophisticated cheating operation at the Annecy casino, using micro-cameras, earphones and artificial intelligence to analyse the cards in real time via an accomplice abroad. The duo, who pocketed more than €270,000 since 2023, were arrested after a nationwide investigation.
Unauthorised online casinos have been using the OnlyFans name to illegally promote their services by running misleading adverts via news sites and influencers. This practice, denounced by the Kansspelautoriteit (Ksa), aimed to exploit the popularity of the platform to attract players, often vulnerable, to unregulated gambling offers.
Journalists from Sky News have fallen victim to deepfakes used to promote illegal online casinos, hidden behind applications presented as games for children on the App Store. Once downloaded, these applications redirect users to unauthorised gambling sites, putting their personal and financial data at risk. Corporate identities have also been stolen to legitimise these scams.
Following the death of Pope Francis at age 88 on April 21, 2025, betting markets quickly mobilized to speculate on his successor. International bookmakers are now offering detailed odds on the frontrunners to become the 267th Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church.
An investigation has been launched in Belgium against Casino Middelkerke over potential social fraud and possible human trafficking. The case stems from the complaint of a former Filipino employee, hired without a valid work permit and dismissed without proper procedure. A case that shakes the image of a once-respected establishment.
The ANJ has launched an innovative e-learning module to train casino and gaming club professionals to identify and support excessive or pathological gamblers. This interactive tool, inspired by a guide published in January 2024, offers realistic 3D immersion and has already enabled more than 1,000 certificates to be issued in just a few months.
In the Netherlands, a winning lottery ticket worth €3.2 million sparked a violent family dispute between a man from Rijswijk and his 80-year-old father-in-law. After buying several tickets and discovering that he had the winning number, the complainant claimed that his father-in-law had discreetly stolen the precious ticket from him.
The Rotterdam court has ordered Betsson to refund €530,000 to a Dutch player who lost money on its platforms between 2014 and 2019, even though the operator did not have a licence to operate legally in the Netherlands.
Winning the lottery, often seen as a dream, can turn into a curse.
An investigation in Italy has revealed an illegal betting ring involving several football players, including Ángel Di María and Weston McKennie. The players allegedly used unauthorised betting platforms to participate in illegal gambling, although their bets were not directly related to football matches.
Gambling addiction among teenagers in Australia is reaching worrying levels, with almost 20% of young people taking part in gambling, often online. This phenomenon is exacerbated by easy access to gambling platforms and a lack of awareness of the risks. Consequences include mental disorders and financial problems.