Key points:
- BOS calls for an amendment to Sweden’s Gambling Act to close a loophole allowing unlicensed operators to target Swedish players
- The proposal seeks to criminalise all unlicensed gambling, regardless of language or currency, aligning Sweden with stricter regulatory models like Denmark’s
The Swedish Trade Association for Online Gambling (BOS) has urged the Ministry of Finance to amend the Gambling Act, citing a legal loophole that allows unlicensed gambling operators to target Swedish players as long as they avoid using the Swedish language or currency.
BOS argues that this gap in regulation has led to a surge in unlicensed gambling offers, undermining consumer protections and reducing the effectiveness of Sweden’s regulated gambling market.
The loophole emerged when the Swedish government modified the original proposal of the Gambling Licence Investigation before the Gambling Act was introduced in 2019.
The initial recommendation aimed to criminalise any operator that accepted Swedish players without a licence, regardless of language or currency use.
However, the final version of the Act only applies to gambling sites that explicitly market their services in Swedish or transact in SEK, allowing many offshore operators to bypass restrictions.
Good to know: The trade body highlighted that approximately 25% of all gambling in Sweden currently occurs outside the licensed system, exposing players to higher risks and a lack of safeguards
BOS is urging the government to revert to the original proposal, which would make all unlicensed gambling illegal, closing the loophole and improving Sweden’s channelisation rate – the percentage of players using legal, regulated services.
Commenting on the request, Secretary General of BOS Gustaf Hoffstedt stated: "Unlicensed gambling should be eliminated in Sweden. It is completely inadequate that around a quarter of all gambling is unlicensed, not least given the total absence of consumer protection on the black gambling market.
“If we are to succeed in eliminating this part of the gambling market, the Gambling Act must be amended and all unlicensed gambling must be criminalised.”
