SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Swedish gambling regulator Lotteriinspektionen has this morning announced its first sixteen approved operators, which will be allowed to service Sweden’s re-regulated online gambling marketplace from 1 January 2019.
As anticipated, established Stockholm-listed enterprises’ Kindred Group Plc, Betsson AB and LeoVegas AB feature on the Lotteriinspektionen approved list.
In a statement released this morning, Kindred Group confirmed that it had secured approval to operate the following domains; unibet.se, mariacasino.se, storspelare.se, bingo.se, igame.se
“Today is a historic day for Kindred,” said Henrik Tjärnström, Group CEO of Kindred Plc. “We have been pushing for a modern and sustainable gambling market in Sweden from the very start of Unibet in 1997, in which the focus is on consumer protection and harm minimisation.”
Meanwhile, Stockholm incumbent Betsson AB has moved to confirm that it will operate three brands, consisting of flagship Betsson and NordicBet (Sportsbook) and SverigeAutomaten (slots) to establish its new home market profile.
“It is good that Sweden has opened up the gaming market for free competition in a controlled environment,” added Betsson CEO Pontus Lindwall. “We look forward to operating on our Swedish home market as a recognised operator on equal terms.”
State-owned gambling asset Svenska Spel has been approved services for betting, lotteries and online casino and is accompanied by national racing firm AB TRAV operating its atg.se domain.
European incumbents are represented by German bookmaker Interwetten Sports, alongside GVC Holdings’ bwin and partygaming (poker + bingo) domains.
In addition, the first list features a UK presence through leading online bookmaker bet365 securing its Lotteriinspektionen approval from sportsbook and gaming, joined by Sunderland online gaming group Tombola (bingo/games).
This November, Lotteriinspektionen executives provided a public stakeholder update, detailing the changes the regulatory body expects to undertake once Sweden’s re-regulated gambling framework is established.
Changes for Lotteriinspektionen include a rebrand to Spelinspektionen (translation – ‘The Gambling Inspectorate’), with the regulator expecting to increase its resources and capacities significantly.
“This is a historic day. I am very proud that the Lotteriinspektionen’s staff under severe pressure, with a whole new legislation, worked out the first license decisions,” said Camilla Rosenberg, director general of the Lotteriinspektionen.
