2027 is a significant year for Finnish gambling as Veikkaus’ long-established monopoly on legal online betting and gaming comes to a close. More than 50 companies have registered interest in obtaining a licence in Finland’s newly regulated sector, and as of the time of writing 18 have secured clearance from the National Police Board.
One sector of the industry that will not be allowed to participate in Finland’s open market is affiliate marketing companies. Under the laws governing online gambling in Finland, affiliates will not be allowed to promote regulated betting sites or online casinos.
Ostensibly a measure to protect players, some fear that it will only serve to give unregulated sites the upper hand.
Jacob Ljunggren, Product Director of Leadstar Media, a global affiliate running affiliate sites such as Oddsbonusar.se and Casinodealen.se, spoke to SBC News to outline his concerns about player safety in Finland’s betting and gaming industry.
SBC News: How should operators engage Finnish players on a personal level?
Finland is not really a new iGaming market. As in many other European markets, there has been both the monopoly operator and international operators serving Finnish players outside the domestic licensing system.
So, Finnish players already have their habits and preferences, and many have relationships with existing brands.
For the operators entering the regulated market, I think the challenge is to give these players a reason to choose them instead.
The product needs to reach a certain level, but I also think that communicating the safety of choosing a licensed option will be important in the messaging. If that is via saying it explicitly or emphasizing the local payment methods might not be as important.
Especially with the restrictions on marketing and welcome bonuses, I think the safety angle will become even more important.
SBC News: How difficult will it be to compete with the unregulated sector when affiliates are restricted?
We know that a lot of players turn to affiliate websites to find and compare sportsbooks and casinos.
From a regulatory perspective, one of the primary goals is to get players into the regulated system. And from that perspective, I think prohibiting affiliates from promoting licensed operators is a mistake, and I think it risks backfiring.
First and foremost, affiliates can help players discover licensed alternatives they might not even be aware of. This becomes particularly important when a market opens and suddenly there are dozens of new operators to choose from.
Secondly, every player who chooses a licensed operator instead of an unlicensed one is a win for the regulated market.
And there is another important aspect. Players will still look for comparisons and recommendations. But companies like us, who want to support the regulated market and direct players towards licensed operators, will not be allowed to do that. This risks leaving the space to those who are willing to ignore the regulation and promote unlicensed operators instead.
Sometimes in football, we talk about six-point games. And I think that is the closest metaphor to this situation. By allowing affiliates, you can both bring players into the regulated system and take potential customers away from the unregulated one.
By prohibiting affiliates, you risk losing on both sides.
SBC: What can operators do to differentiate themselves despite the advertising restrictions?
I think Sweden is a good market to compare Finland with, as there are a lot of similarities between the two countries, both in terms of regulation and gambling culture.
But there are also some important differences. In Sweden, both affiliate marketing and welcome bonuses are allowed, while Finland will restrict both. And I think this will make the acquisition part particularly challenging for operators. What will they push, and where?
But I also think we have seen some interesting trends in Sweden that I expect to be similar in Finland.
For example, even though welcome bonuses are allowed in Sweden, we have seen operators choose not to offer them, and instead focus more on making the entire experience as simple and seamless as possible. This means having a great signup process, the right payment methods, and generally a great user experience.
And I think this is where a lot of the differentiation will need to happen in Finland as well.
If you have dozens of operators offering more or less the same slots, betting markets and general experience, why should a player choose one over another?
I don’t think every operator needs to be the best at everything. But they should have a clear idea of which users they want to attract, and why those users would prefer their product over the competition.
SBC: How concerned are you that the unlicensed operators will continue to dominate the market in Finland post-launch?
I think this is a clear risk with the way the regulations are laid out. We have seen challenges with channelisation in many regulated European markets, even if there is always a debate about exactly how poor it actually is.
For the regulated market to succeed, it needs to be competitive. Operators should be able to offer attractive products, and users need to understand the benefits of choosing licensed options, particularly in terms of protection and safety.
This balance is not easy from a regulatory point of view.
I think the operators will be able to offer fairly attractive products in Finland, but I am less sure about how well players will understand the differences between licensed and unlicensed operators.
Especially if affiliates who are willing to promote unlicensed alternatives continue to do so, and present them as equally safe options.
How should a player be able to distinguish a licensed operator from an unlicensed one?
We know from Sweden that this is not necessarily easy. Even after years of regulation, Spelinspektionen’s 2025 survey showed that 70% of respondents who had gambled during the past year could not say whether a gambling operator had a Swedish licence or not.
And I think that illustrates the importance of informing players and helping them find the regulated alternatives.
SBC: What expectations do you have for Finland’s market opening in terms of size and opportunity?
I have quite high expectations in terms of the size and significance of the Finnish market. I think the interest from operators, with more than 80 licence applications already submitted, also points to that. Everyone wants a piece.
We should also remember that this isn’t really a new market. A lot of Finnish players are already gambling with international operators, so the opportunity is largely about bringing that activity into the regulated system.
If it will be worth the hype is a different question.
Will operators be able to figure out the acquisition part? And will the regulated offering be attractive enough to move players from their existing operators?
It will be a very different market from Sweden and Denmark with the restrictions applied, and I think it will be interesting to see how operators approach that challenge.
SBC: What other market launches will Leadstar Media be keeping an eye out for in 2027?
Good question! I guess we will see if more Canadian provinces follow in the footsteps of Alberta, which opened its regulated market earlier this year.
Otherwise, I think the development of prediction markets will be particularly interesting to follow. We have seen a lot of activity in this area, and it will be interesting to see whether it becomes a global phenomenon and how different regulators choose to approach it.
There is interest in prediction markets in Sweden as well, but we are yet to see how the regulatory situation develops.