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Denmark sharply expanded its campaign against unlicensed gambling operators in 2025, blocking more than twice as many websites as it did a year earlier as regulators continued to rely on DNS enforcement to curb access to the illegal market.
New figures from the Danish Gambling Authority show that 334 gambling websites were blocked during the year, up from 162 in 2024. The increase of 172 websites represents a 106.2% jump in enforcement activity and marks one of the regulator’s most aggressive actions against unauthorized online operators to date.
The report also offers an early indication that the strategy is having an impact. Data collected after enforcement actions found that traffic from Danish users to blocked gambling sites fell by 34% during the six months following DNS blocks compared with the period before the restrictions were introduced.
Regulators view that decline as evidence that website blocking continues to disrupt access to illegal gambling services, even as offshore operators look for ways to stay visible online.
Fewer Requests, More Websites Taken Offline
One detail stands out in the annual report. While the number of blocking requests actually fell, the total number of websites removed from reach climbed sharply.
The authority submitted 197 requests for website blockings in 2025, down from 214 the previous year. Despite that decline, enforcement resulted in far more domains being blocked, suggesting individual cases increasingly involved multiple websites or broader action against connected gambling operations.
Activity accelerated during the year. In June alone, authorities blocked 178 illegal gambling websites, accounting for more than half of the annual total.
Enforcement Extends Beyond Online Gambling
The regulator’s attention was not limited to digital operators.
Its report also details investigations involving 25 land-based gambling venues where slot machines had been installed without the required licences. Those cases formed part of wider efforts to enforce Denmark’s gambling rules across both online and retail markets.
The latest enforcement figures arrive as European regulators continue to tighten oversight of gambling operators. They also follow the release of the Malta Gaming Authority’s 2025 annual report, which outlined its own enforcement activity and sports betting integrity monitoring, reflecting continued regulatory pressure across multiple jurisdictions.
Source: www.intergameonline.com
