Dutch Regulator Renews bet365 and 7 Others’ Licences

The Dutch gambling regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has renewed online licences for eight operators, including bet365’s parent company Hillside, marking the first time any operator has gone through a full renewal cycle since the Netherlands opened its regulated online market in 2021. The new licences run from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2031, but only after each operator’s five-year compliance record was put under the microscope.

What’s actually changed

The Dutch Gambling Authority reported eight online gambling licences had been reissued as part of its five year-renewal plan for the sector, enabling continued legal operations in the Netherlands from 1 October 2026 through to 30 September 2031.

It’s the first time since the market launched in 2021 that licences have come up for renewal, with the initial licences set to expire at the end of September 2026.
The renewed operators include TOTO, Holland Casino, Kansino operator Play North, FairPlay Casino, Bingoal, GGPoker operator NSUS Malta, Betcity operator Betent, and bet365 operator Hillside.

Crucially, this wasn’t a rubber stamp.
Unlike at market launch, the KSA now has several years of supervisory and enforcement history to consider, meaning compliance history now forms a clearer part of the follow-on licensing process rather than treating applications as a straightforward continuation.

The regulator noted that several operators received “additional points for attention,” indicating that while these applicants met minimum legal thresholds, the KSA expected continuous improvements in compliance practices.

Some operators had chequered records to explain.
TOTO Online was reported for violating the ban on featuring role models in advertising materials in June, not the first time it had been in trouble with the KSA after being fined in 2022 for adverts seemingly aimed at young people.
For bet365, the renewal came only weeks after a separate setback:
the Dutch regulator granted the licence just four weeks after rejecting the operator’s challenge to an order over player protection.

The KSA weighed five years of violations, including a €2.65 million fine against Betcity’s operator, and found none of them disqualifying.
Separately, the Dutch Council of State also upheld the state lottery operator’s exclusive licences for lotteries and retail sports betting, keeping that part of the market a legal monopoly for the new term.

What it means for you

If you hold an account with bet365, or with any operator that also runs a Dutch-licensed brand, this story doesn’t change anything about your UK account directly – the KSA has no authority over the UK Gambling Commission licence that governs your protections here. But it’s a useful reminder that the same household names British players use are subject to separate scrutiny in every market they operate in, and that regulators elsewhere are increasingly treating licence renewal as a genuine compliance checkpoint rather than a formality.
It’s also worth noting that Holland Casino recently found itself in trouble after allowing a self-excluded player – a reporter testing the system, who used a colleague’s driving licence – to gamble at a land-based venue despite staff checking documents.
That kind of failure, however isolated, is exactly the sort of incident regulators say they now factor into renewal decisions.

The bigger picture

For UK readers following the Gambling Act White Paper reforms, this is a glimpse of where regulatory thinking across Europe is heading: using licence renewal, not just fines, as leverage over player protection.
Obtaining a new licence increasingly requires more than demonstrating current systems meet the latest requirements – previous conduct, player-protection measures, advertising practices and responses to earlier compliance problems all come under scrutiny.
The UK Gambling Commission already reviews operator licences on an ongoing basis and has previously suspended or revoked them for serious failings, but the Dutch approach of a scheduled, wholesale renewal cycle across an entire market is a different model – one that gives a regulator a structured moment to weigh up five years of history all at once, rather than reacting case by case. Whether that model influences future UK reviews remains to be seen, but it’s a data point worth watching as the Commission continues its own ongoing scrutiny of operator conduct.

Sources

• iGaming Business – KSA issues first eight online licence renewals
• Gambling News – Netherlands Renews Eight Online Gaming Operators’ Licenses
• SiGMA – Dutch regulator confirms eight follow-on online gambling licences
• Best in Slot – KSA renews licences for eight Dutch operators, upholds Lotto BV monopoly
• Casino Listings – KSA Begins Issuing Online Licence Renewals
• FairGambling Newsroom – bet365 Wins Dutch Online License Renewal Through 2031