For many years, gambling activities that take place in Finland have been heavily regulated and controlled by the government. Even though the European Union is pressuring Finland to end a gambling monopoly, the country is not succumbing to any of these pressures and no gambling laws have changed. Finland is home to some land-based casinos and many residents are quite fond of gambling.
Throughout the country, players can enjoy the thrills of slot games that are licensed to charitable institutions. Funds that are earned from wagers placed must be used to fund charities. The country is also home to 78 arcades, more than 30,000 slots, and more than 250 restaurants that feature casino table games.
Finland offers state-run casinos as well as online betting sites for sports wagering, but there is no legal framework in place that would prosecute any player from accessing casino sites that are operating offshore. Finnish gambling sites are named nettikasino.
Who Controls Gambling in Finland
Over the years, Finland has made no moves to end a monopoly and there are currently three companies that offer forms of gambling to residents. These three companies operate the licensed casinos operating in the country as well as the online casinos and betting sites. Here, we take a closer look at these three entities and explain what forms of gambling they control.
- RAY – RAY monopolizes all of the land-based gambling within the country. This includes any offering of table and card games as well as slot machines.
- Veikkaus Oy – This company has complete control over all instant win games as well as the national lottery and any forms of sports betting.
- Fintoto Oy – This is the last of the three companies that controls all pari-mutuel horse racing that is featured in Finland.
At this time, no licensed private operators are allowed to operate in Finland, leaving players with limited choices. With the monopoly in place, operators based in other countries are unable to enter the industry. However, players do have the option to sign up at offshore sites and engage in legal betting with no consequences.
The Lotteries Act
This is the main gambling law that is in place in Finland and the sole purpose is to protect gamblers and to minimize any negative effects that gambling activities may have on residents. This includes gambling addictions as well as problem gambling. For residents to take part in any form of gambling they must be at least 18 years of age. The current laws have been designed to protect underage players.
The country has strict regulations in place when it comes to online gambling, As part of the Act, those looking to play at any online casino that is state-run will have to pass a verification test. This requires individuals to prove their age, physical address, and identity. This process is required for anyone that wishes to access games provided at an online casino in the country.
There are also strict rules in place regarding the advertising of gambling. It is illegal to offer any advertisement to anyone under the age of 18. Any ad that is designed to make gambling activities attractive is prohibited. Games that are played for real money can only be advertised in casinos and arcades. They cannot be presented on television or any social media platform.
Online Gambling in the Future
There have been some efforts to reform the Lotteries act, though these will not have any focus on offering private operators the ability to enter the Finnish market. Instead, the reform would be focused on strengthening the current state-owned companies. There is also talk of trying to block residents from accessing any offshore sites and transferring money into accounts at online casinos.
The effectiveness of IP-blocking has not been proven and many other countries have taken a similar approach with no success. With the use of ewallets and cryptocurrencies, players will still be able to join a casino in another country and conduct real money transactions. This is easily done by using a VPN to navigate any blocking tactics that are taken.
The Finnish government believes that by offering only state-run casinos and online betting sites, revenue will stay in Finland and benefit the economy and the government. Those that oppose current legislation state that the country is losing funds to foreign sites. They state that if online gambling was decentralized, the government would be able to collect taxes to boost revenue.
Despite the arguments of the benefits of opening online gambling doors, Finland remains a tightly regulated country and has taken no further steps to allow the gaming industry to grow outside of the current monopoly. Players can continue to access offshore sites to have a larger selection, though they will have to circumvent any blocking that is in place.
