Belgium Online Gambling Nearly Doubles Despite Strict Ad Ban

Belgium online gambling has grown sharply since 2018, even after the country placed strict limits on advertising by licensed private operators.

Good to Know

• Sciensano found 14.8% of Belgians now gamble online, up from 7.9% in 2018.
• 52.6% of Belgians still see gambling ads at least once a week.
• BAGO says lottery advertising and illegal gambling sites keep reaching players.

The Sciensano Health Interview Survey 2023-2024 shows a gap between policy and player behavior. Belgium banned many gambling ads from licensed private operators in 2023, yet online gambling still nearly doubled over five years.

The Belgian Association of Gaming Operators, or BAGO, wants stronger action against unlicensed gambling sites. The trade body says weekly ad exposure does not come only from licensed private companies, because illegal brands and the National Lottery still reach consumers through channels that private operators cannot use.

Lottery Ads And Illegal Sites Keep Reaching Players

Sciensano found that 31.9% of Belgians gambled at least once in the past year, while 8.0% gambled weekly. Online play reached 14.8% of the population, with the highest online rate among people aged 25 to 34 at 20.2%.

The same survey found 2.6% of the Belgian population at risk of problem gambling under the short-form PGSI tool. Among people who gambled in the past year, that rate rose to 7.7%.

Advertising remains hard to avoid. Weekly exposure reached 51.1% on television, 47.3% on websites and apps, and 46.4% on social media. Street ads, shop displays, newspapers, and magazines also appeared in the data.

Belgium blocks licensed private gambling operators from advertising on television, radio, newspapers, magazines, social media, email, post, and SMS. Limited room remains for venue communication, operator websites, and some search engine advertising. A sports sponsorship ban also began in early 2025.

The National Lottery sits largely outside the Gambling Act. Sciensano data shows lottery games remain the most popular gambling product, used by 29.5% of the population, or about 92% of Belgian gamblers. Lottery ads can still run across television, radio, and social media.

BAGO said the 52.6% weekly ad exposure figure “does not originate exclusively from licensed private operators.” The group said exposure is “also influenced by actors who fall outside the prohibition, operate under transitional regimes, or fail to comply with the rules.”

Belgium also faces pressure from offshore operators. Unlicensed sites can target players through social media, affiliates, and influencers, while avoiding EPIS self-exclusion checks, weekly deposit limits, age verification, and licensed market player protection rules.

The pattern is not limited to Belgium. Italian football federation analysis linked the 2018 Dignity Decree ad ban to about €25 billion in yearly unlicensed wagers. In the Netherlands, a 2024 study found the illegal market share rose from about 20% in 2021 to more than 35% late in 2023 after tighter deposit limits and ad rules.

The UK has taken another route. The UK Gambling Commission recently posted a senior Head of Illegal Markets role, while the government added £26 million for black market enforcement after Betting and Gaming Council research put the UK illegal market at £16.6 billion in 2025.

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