Dutch Lottery Posts €8m Loss After Two-Year Tax Rise
Nederlandse Loterij posted an €8m net loss for 2025, compared to a €31m profit the year before. Net revenue fell from €724m to €681m as two consecutive gambling tax increases, stricter online limits and new advertising restrictions combined to reduce the operator’s annual income.
The Dutch gambling tax rose from 30.5% to 34.2% in January 2025, then to 37.8% in January 2026. Nederlandse Loterij said the cumulative effect of those increases reduced revenue capacity by around 25%. Total stakes fell 15% to €5.143bn, while prize payouts dropped from €5.358bn to €4.477bn.
Beyond the tax rises, the operator cited a July 2025 ban on sports sponsorship, stricter online gambling stake limits introduced in October 2024 and a ban on tobacco sales in supermarkets as additional drags on performance. The sponsorship ban had a direct impact on its TOTO sports brand.
CEO Arjan Blok said the operator remained financially sound but warned against any further tax increases.
“Further increases endanger the balance between responsible gaming offerings and social returns,” Blok said. “It is precisely the players who need our protection the most who are turning to illegal offerings.”
Blok also said that higher tax rates leave less room for licensed operators to offer competitive prizes and products, which pushes players toward unregulated platforms.
Nederlandse Loterij warned that the Dutch regulated market has lost ground to unlicensed competitors. The company said channelisation has now fallen below 50% when measured by gross gaming revenue. A revised methodology adopted by the Dutch Gambling Authority in 2025, developed by the operator itself, revealed the illegal market was “much larger than previously thought.” Nederlandse Loterij said the finding should make enforcement against unlicensed operators the central priority of Dutch gambling policy.
Despite the net loss, the operator distributed €200.6m to social causes in 2025: €126.4m to government initiatives, €53.8m to sports and €20.4m to 18 charities. TOTO Casino achieved market leadership in the Dutch online gambling market in October 2025.
💡TGJ Take
The Dutch market is a stress test for Europe’s regulated gambling model. Operators face higher taxes, tighter advertising rules and stricter affordability controls at the same time, while illegal sites avoid those costs entirely. Nederlandse Loterij’s public link between tax policy and the fall in channelisation adds direct pressure on Dutch authorities ahead of any future tax discussions. For licensed operators in regulated European markets, the core issue is no longer growth. It is whether the regulated product stays competitive enough to retain players inside the legal market.
