Dutch Operators Push Meta Liability Fight Over 97% Illegal Ads
Dutch gambling trade association VNLOK confirmed on 22 June 2026 that it will sue Meta and file a complaint with the European Commission over illegal gambling advertising on Facebook and Instagram. VNLOK says more than 95% of gambling ads it found on the two platforms in the final quarter of 2025 came from unlicensed operators targeting Dutch consumers. The group wants a Dutch court to declare Meta liable under the Digital Services Act.
VNLOK’s case is built on its own ad monitoring through Meld Vals Spel, a project tracking gambling promotion on Meta’s platforms. Illegal ads made up 96.9% of gambling ads in October 2025, 97.2% in November, and 95.9% in December. VNLOK recorded 61,717 such ads in October, 84,493 in November, and 67,732 in December, with November alone generating 50 million impressions.
Meta removed only 3% of flagged ads in October, 5.2% in November, and 4.7% in December, according to VNLOK’s figures. VNLOK argues a reporting-led takedown model can’t keep pace, since many ads reappear under different names or links within days.
The Dutch regulator backs that pattern from a separate angle. On 7 May 2026, the Kansspelautoriteit said it filed more than 4,600 reports with Meta in April alone about illegal ads on Facebook and Instagram. The KSA said illegal operators frequently use the names and logos of well-known Dutch athletes and major brands, making it harder for consumers to spot licensed operators.
VNLOK chairman Björn Fuchs framed the case as a consumer protection issue, not just a commercial one. He said unlicensed operators ignore Dutch addiction prevention rules and actively target minors and problem gamblers.
VNLOK wants the court to declare Meta directly liable for illegal content under the DSA and order system-level fixes, backed by daily penalties for non-compliance. It has also asked the European Commission to investigate Meta and consider sanctions.
Meta told Dutch broadcaster NOS that it does not catch every illegal gambling ad but said it is working on improvements. VNLOK points to a separate Dutch case brought by Bits of Freedom over Facebook and Instagram feed settings as proof that Dutch courts can order practical changes from Meta.
VNLOK estimates the Dutch illegal online gambling market is now roughly the same size as the regulated one, worth more than €1bn a year. Licensed Dutch operators carry strict advertising limits and duty-of-care obligations that unlicensed competitors ignore while still buying reach on the same platforms.
💡 TGJ Take
VNLOK is turning illegal gambling ads from a moderation problem into a liability problem for Meta. The case turns on one number: a removal rate under 5% against tens of thousands of flagged ads a month. That gap is hard for Meta to explain away in court. For licensed Dutch operators, the ruling decides whether unfair ad-spend competition with illegal brands continues unchecked or gets capped by enforceable platform rules. Affiliates running Dutch-facing campaigns should watch whether the order targets individual ads or Meta’s detection systems, since the second option would hit gambling ad approval across the whole EU.
