With heavy restrictions facing marketing for online gambling companies across the globe, many have forgone traditional media and gone straight to digital. Influencer marketing is one facet that has bucked the trend, but its glory days may soon be coming to an end.
The influencer is a person with a large online following. They often use this for commercial purposes, recommending products and items in exchange for kickbacks or freebies. One sector that has grown strong in recent years is gambling by influencers, who may play slot games, place bets, or even take part in live-streamed table games. New regulations across the globe are cracking down on this, and things may be about to change for iGaming influencer marketing.
Finland’s Clampdown on Gambling Influencers
The most recent country to crack down on gambling influencers is Finland. It sent prohibition orders to two streamers, who had been promoting unlicensed platforms. Providing a cease and desist letter, they asked the influencers to remove any content that had already been published. The fine for not doing so has been set at €30,000 per person. All penalty notices were sent in May and made public this month.
A payment order has also been sent to a third influencer. This person carried on after the cease and desist was issued. They now owe the government €30,000. In all cases, the influencers are noted to have been operating on platforms like Twitch and Kick. They had been promoting companies licensed outside of Finland, known as offshore companies.
Online gambling in Finland is only permitted through a state-owned company. However, even this has strict regulations on how and where it can market itself and advertise.
Influencer Gambling in the United States
In the United States, the clampdown on gambling influencers has been made harder by the state-by-state approach to gambling laws. So far, only seven states allow online casino gambling. These are New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. With such a checkerboard approach, stopping gambling influencers has been tough.
Streaming platform Twitch did change its approach in 2022. Previously, it allowed any form of streaming, including sites that were based offshore. Now, it only allows gambling content to be streamed from sites that are licensed in the US and its jurisdictions. However, they had banned referral links and codes long before this. This came from an admission by a popular streamer that he had asked for loans and contributions from his 400,000 followers under false pretences to fuel his gambling.
There are other ways US sites market themselves without the use of influencers, however, and this ban may not have a huge impact on the sector. Most new players come through the promotions offered to new players, such as free spins and matched deposits. When combined with no deposit bonuses, and the amount of education available to help people understand and start on the games, this is often a much better scheme.
Sweden Also Follows Gambling Influencer Crackdown
A further country that is cracking down on gambling influencers is Sweden. The Spelinspektionen, Sweden’s gambling authority, has decided to ban all forms of gambling on Twitch due to its appeal to younger children. In Sweden, it is illegal to market gambling services unless the company or individual body holds a license from the authority.
An investigation launched in Spring has found that these streams often contain bonus offers and direct links to many unlicensed casinos. It also found that many streamers engaged with viewers in real time, getting them to follow promotional links and asking them to play games with them. All of the influencers monitored have now ceased their activities.
So far, there have been no fines or fees issued to gamblers. However, the Gaming Authority has stated that continued involvement will result in legal action. This could include large fines.
This follows a wider move to prioritise youth gambling and illegal gambling as the main issue in 2025. The Spelinspektionen has said it will do this by introducing strict controls and banning celebrity advertising of gambling products.
In the same month, the Dutch Gambling Authority, known as the KSA, issued its first penalty to an influencer who had flouted previous cease and desist letters. Known by their YouTube name of LeftlanePapi, their real name is Djade Sadloe. With 53,000 subscribers, he had been found promoting gambling companies that were not licensed and based in the Netherlands, and was given a €25,000 penalty per violation.
Similar moves have been made in Kenya and elsewhere on the globe. Gambling can benefit from influencer marketing. However, if it wants to avoid total bans, then it must begin to regulate its own sector, ensuring compliance and responsibility for the third parties it is hiring to promote it. If not, iGaming may find the door closed for good.
