SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Spain’s gambling regulator has fined 14 online operators a total of €77m for offering services without a licence, in the latest crackdown on the unregulated market.
The General Directorate for the Regulation of Gambling (DGOJ) announced the penalties in an update on its enforcement actions. Fines ranged from €5m-€10m, with most operators receiving the lower end of the scale. One operator received the maximum fine for what the DGOJ described as “more severe violations”.
The sanctioned companies include: Adonio, Chestoption, FGS Software, Group Game, Investan, Lama Tech, Magicwin Games Tech, Mibs, Pennytech, Spicyjackpots, Techsolutions, Tinietech, Winbet, and Wot.
In addition to the financial penalties, the DGOJ has blocked all 14 operators from Spain’s iGaming market for a period of two years.
A DGOJ spokesperson said the fines reflect the regulator’s ongoing efforts to protect the integrity of Spain’s legal gambling market. “We will not hesitate to take firm action against companies that endanger consumers or operate outside the law,” the spokesperson said.
This latest enforcement round adds to a growing list of sanctions as the regulator continues to tighten oversight. Earlier this year, the DGOJ hosted an anti-money laundering summit to address risks tied to unlicensed gambling, including links to identity theft, terrorist financing, and fraud.
The Spanish online gambling market continues to grow, with 2024 gross gaming revenue (GGR) reaching €1.45bn — a record figure. While legal operators benefit from this upward trend, the DGOJ has warned that illegal platforms pose an increasing threat to market integrity and consumer safety.
As it stands, the DGOJ is awaiting the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to finalise its roadmap for implementing the Royal Decree on Safer Gambling Environments. The decree was authorised in 2023 but saw no progress in 2024 towards the adoption of new player protection measures and customer care duties for licensees.
To prevent excessive gambling, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs has been tasked with coordinating the development of centralised deposit limits across operators. These include market-wide caps of €600 per day and €1,500 per week across all accounts.
The mandate will also require operators to apply new customer controls for players under the age of 25, who can no longer be targeted with advertising and must be re-registered with the DGOJ once they exceed €200 in losses.
