The Netherlands is renewing its national strategy to reduce gambling harm with a five-year program built around early detection, independent research and improved social services. The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) and health research body ZonMw will oversee the initiative, which runs from 2025 to 2030 and is financed entirely through the Addiction Prevention Fund, funded by operator levies.
Independent research models aims to turn science into frontline prevention
ZonMw will manage research calls, coordinate universities and clinical centers and ensure scientific independence. For regulators, the design is intended to guarantee that new findings are quickly translated into frontline practice, not left within academic studies.
KSA chair Michel Groothuizen said the program reinforces a core regulatory principle: protecting players through better risk-detection and earlier intervention. ZonMw’s Véronique Timmerhuis described gambling addiction as an urgent and complex public health issue that requires collaboration across all mental health services, social care and support groups.
New program will focus on early risk to clinical care
The 2025–2030 program expands work already underway, focusing on the entire continuum from prevention to care. Priority areas include vulnerability and behavior, digital gambling risks, comorbidities and the development of screening tools that can detect early signs of addiction.
A separate pillar will refine clinical practice across addiction care, mental health services and social support. Lived-experience organizations will be directly involved to ensure interventions reflect real-world needs. All outputs will feed into a national knowledge hub designed to give schools, clinicians and policymakers a single point of access for guidelines, training and tools.
Industry pressure as Dutch players move toward illegal sites
The latest investment comes as the legal market faces growing challenges. Industry representatives warn that strict deposit limits, tightening rules and higher taxes are pushing Dutch players toward illegal sites. Official figures indicate that only 49 percent of online gambling revenue flows through licensed operators.
Critics argue that the regulated channel risks becoming less attractive than the black market, particularly as operational costs rise and restrictions tighten. Holland Casino has already reported losses, citing the strain of increased taxes and regulatory pressure. While the KSA maintains that player protection must come first, operators warn that prevention and enforcement need to be balanced with policies that keep the legal market competitive.
€2M early-detection initiative launches to close longstanding regulatory gaps
Alongside the main program, the KSA has committed €2 million to create the Early Detection of Gambling Harm Partnership (SVSG). The initiative brings together the Trimbos Institute, addiction specialists, municipal health services and the national debt-assistance network.
The partnership is designed to address one of the system’s persistent gaps: gambling problems are often identified only after they escalate. Although more than 200,000 people are estimated to be at high risk, a small fraction seek treatment. Shame, debt and lack of awareness often delay help.
The SVSG will guide municipalities in building early-detection policies, expand training for frontline workers and develop cross-sector pathways that allow faster referral into support services. A pilot will begin in five municipalities in 2026 before expanding to at least fifteen in 2027.
Turning research into prevention, and prevention into policy
The renewed strategy builds on earlier projects presented at international conferences in 2024 and 2025, covering risk indicators, digital monitoring, mental-health links and personalized treatment pathways. First measurable outcomes are expected soon, and officials say these findings will help create the updated guidelines.
Prevention efforts are also extending into sport. The KSA has clarified that non-compliant gambling sponsorships are not permitted at high-visibility events such as the Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort, part of a broader effort to limit exposure among younger audiences.
Program sets long-term expectations for operators in an already strict market
For operators, the five-year program outlines a long-term expectation: compliance and participation in preventive systems are essential to a sustainable market. While critics warn that over-regulation is driving players offshore, a strong prevention framework may help stabilize the legal channel by improving consumer trust and policy effectiveness.
For other European regulators, the Dutch model offers a structured approach: an industry-funded prevention fund, public governance, transparent calls for research and a commitment to turning evidence into practice.
With €21 million committed to research, prevention and care, the Netherlands is signaling that harm reduction is not an add-on but a foundation of gambling policy. Whether the program succeeds will depend on execution, but the direction is unmistakable: scientific evidence, early detection and coordinated care will shape the next phase of Dutch gambling regulation.
References:
- KSA – Announcement of the 2025–2030 gambling harm-prevention program – https://kansspelautoriteit.nl/nieuws/2024/november/aanpak-gokschade-2025-2030/
- ZonMw – Program page: Research into the prevention of gambling harm (2025–2030) – https://www.zonmw.nl/en/programs/research-into-the-prevention-of-gambling-harm-2025-2030
- KSA – Early detection initiative (SVSG) announcement – https://kansspelautoriteit.nl/nieuws/2024/november/vroegsignalering-gokschade/
- KSA – Addiction Prevention Fund (VPF) information – https://kansspelautoriteit.nl/over-ons/verslavingspreventiefonds/
