Finland Prepares for 2027 Online Gambling Liberalisation Amid Customer Base Imbalances and Regulator Concerns

Finland will launch its regulated online gambling market in July 2027, ending a state monopoly that has shaped the sector for decades. Operators will enter on markedly different terms, with some carrying over millions of existing customers and others beginning with none.

Veikkaus holds more than 2.7 million customers and expects to retain over 2 million who played sports betting and casino games. The largest operators may bring more than 1 million players each, several hold six-figure bases, and a handful—including Hippos ATG, a joint venture between ATG and Suomen Hippos—start from scratch. MGA-licensed operators will transfer their existing Finnish customer data into the new framework.

As reported by iGaming Business, Antti Koivula, chief compliance officer at Hippos ATG, raised these disparities after a panel titled “Finland’s waiting: The start of a new European market” at the SBC Summit in Lisbon. Koivula said there was some discussion of whether the playing field is genuinely level. “But there’s no point crying about it: it has been decided and everyone will have to live with it.”

Long Overdue Liberalisation

Koivula views the reform as long overdue. He argued it should have happened 10 or 15 years ago, and that 2017—when Finland’s three state-owned operators merged into Veikkaus—represented a clear opportunity. The channelisation rate was already declining at that time.

Veikkaus’s gross gaming revenue has since fallen by around 45% from roughly €1.7-1.8 billion, with payments to the state dropping by a similar proportion. Asked what finally prompted the state to act, Koivula answered: “Money.” The Finnish market remains lucrative, with high per capita GGR and gambling long integrated into everyday settings such as slot machines in grocery stores. Veikkaus stays fully state-owned, with talk of a partial sale not expected to materialise before 2030.

The Readiness Question

The new supervisory authority assumes responsibility on 1 July 2027, yet its director is not scheduled to begin until 1 January. This leaves six months for setup. Koivula voiced concern over whether the authority will be operational de facto from day one, even if it meets its legal obligations. Licences are expected to issue on schedule, but early guidance and black-market supervision may prove limited.

The Finnish regulator will operate with less than half the staffing of its Danish counterpart despite the countries’ comparable size. Operators starting from scratch now face a compressed countdown. The initial market phase will test whether structural advantages for the incumbent can be offset by effective oversight, or whether early competitive distortions become entrenched.

Reporting: iGaming Business (iGB)

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