Michel Groothuizen, chair of the Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), is sounding the alarm. He warns that the legal gambling market is under growing pressure. Without stronger and more coordinated global enforcement, illegal operators could outpace regulated ones.
His message is clear: regulators, tech firms, and payment providers must join forces. He says it’s time to form a kind of Gambling Interpol. Let’s break down how realistic this is.
Since the Netherlands legalized online gambling in 2021, Groothuizen says they have built strong infrastructure. This includes a central data vault and the Cruks exclusion register. These systems help protect players and reduce the influence of the illegal market.
However, he warns that the digital game has evolved much faster than lawmakers predicted.
He says, a so-called advertising tsunami that regulators had already feared the influx gambling ads after legalization was huge.
Now, tougher rules like the ban on untargeted ads may have reduced some exposure. However, Groothuizen believes a total ad ban could backfire. He warns it may drive more players to illegal, unregulated sites where there is no protection at all.
He argues that an even bigger concern is emerging. While more than 90% of players in the Netherlands still use legal sites, the legal sector’s share of total turnover has dropped below 50%.
That means that roughly half of all gambling expenditure now goes to illegal sites. Groothuizen warns unlicensed operators might already be handling more money than that, as well as more than the regulated ones.
Groothuizen is pushing a radical idea. He wants European authorities to unite under a single enforcement structure. He says this system should eventually expand to a global level. A type of a gambling Interpol.
He says no single watchdog can keep up with the creativity and reach of illegal operators. They use everything from social media and influencers to dark-web techniques.
