Betting|The breaking of Veikkaus’ monopoly was inevitable. “The clock had struck for monopoly.”
“Here would have to be checked if it had to be done by hand,” Vice President of Veikkaus Velipekka Nummikoski he says and folds the long Eurojackpot receipt into the pocket of his jacket.
Nummikoski has bought a group game for 20 players from the kiosk, where one part cost ten euros.
With the game, you can enter the 120 million euro Eurolotto draw. With one perfect hit, each member of the team game would win six million euros.
Nowadays, the lottery line is checked automatically, and any winnings are transferred directly to the game account of Veikkaus’ online application.
Of course, you can play the lottery without an online application, but the player must identify himself separately.
Lottopelit are almost the only gambling games that Nummikoski plays. The usual Lotto is still a favorite among Finns. Its position will not change, even if the Finnish gambling system moves to the license market.
The gambling reform opens up the market for international gambling companies. The law enters into force in 2026. The new license system will be in use in mid-2026 or early 2027 at the earliest.
The implementation depends on how quickly the state gets gambling control up and running and when the new gambling management system is ready.
Veikkaus will remain a central gambling operator in the future as well. Traditional gambling games such as Lotto, Keno and Vikinglotto as well as slot machines in shops, service stations and kiosks will remain with the current monopoly, Veikkaus.
Sports betting, online casinos and Horse games open to the license system. These games will also remain in Veikkaus’ offer.
In all about 50 companies entered the license system. There are 100 companies in the corresponding market in Sweden, just under 50 in Denmark.
Nummikoski believes that serious gambling companies will apply for a license.
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“In August 2022, we issued a profit warning for the gambling system and came out of it. The clock had struck for monopoly”,
“The conditions must be such that it is worth applying. Then you can see the amount. About 70 percent of Veikkaus’ current gaming margin would remain in the exclusive right. The remaining 30 percent would be transferred to a license, which now includes gambling going abroad,” says Nummikoski.
We are talking about the degree of channeling, which means how many percent of gambling is channeled into the official system. Finland’s goal is a channelization rate of about 90 percent.
“Then there is also talk of ‘Curaçao’ companies that hardly apply for an official license.”
Whereby on the basis of which such a license system has been decided upon?
The roots go back to 2016, when Veikkaus, the ATM Association and Fintoto were merged. The purpose was to strengthen the monopoly. It was also approved by the EU.
“A fort was built to defend the common monopoly. It was the last battle,” says Nummikoski.
At the same time, the political decision-makers were told that the monopoly’s days are numbered if gambling going abroad cannot be stopped.
The background was the strong digitization of gambling. Gambling abroad could not be stopped when the market developed online, and Veikkaus’ share kept decreasing.
The final turning point occurred in 2022: Veikkaus’ share of online gaming fell below 50 percent.
“Then it had to be stated that it was here. In August 2022, we issued a gambling system profit warning and came out of it. The clock had struck for the monopoly,” says Nummikoski.
Veikkaus is a long-term sponsor of Finnish football.
Veikkaus recently signed a cooperation agreement with the Jääkieksliitto until 2030, i.e. the license period.
Veikkausen the exit aroused surprisingly little opposition among the decision-makers. The atmosphere around the monopoly had subsided.
“There was a do-it-yourself atmosphere. Veikkaus had become a company among others.”
Breaking the spiritual umbilical cord was made easier when Veikkaus’ income started going to the state budget without earmarking the beneficiaries.
Also In Harri Sailaks the working group’s report on the matter in spring 2023 accelerated decisions. Petteri Orpon (kok) government just blessed the decision in its program.
“The matter progressed one step faster. We really sensed the change in atmosphere, and it was significant. That solved the matter,” says Nummikoski.
In gambling the moving sums are large, even in a country the size of Finland.
Of Veikkaus’ game margin of around one billion euros in 2023, 300 million euros came from games that will be transferred to the license system in the future.
When you add the current value of the money spent abroad, about 600 million euros, the size of the new license system is about 850–900 million euros.
Of that 600 million, the companies would pay 22 percent tax, or about 130 million euros, which would be completely new money for the state.
“Therefore, what is new in the pot is everything that is played out of Finland through other gaming companies. In the future, growth will take place specifically in the license market,” says Nummikoski.
Thus calculated, the reform sounds really good from the state’s point of view, but that’s not all.
Finnish sports and commercial media are waiting for reform in the language of water. In order for money to move and people to play, gambling companies need to market their products.
Marketing can go partly through traditional media, but also through social media. In terms of advertising revenue, the media expects millions in revenue from the license system.
“For the media, this change means significant new income. There are no special restrictions being set for traditional media, as long as the advertising is in good taste,” says Nummikoski.
Velipekka Nummikoski says he mainly plays lottery games.
Other preparation in the initial phase, significant restrictions were proposed for the marketing of gambling games.
Radio ads could only be heard at night. Gambling should not have been advertised in the sports hall at all if there had been even one child there.
With conditions that were too strict, there would have been no entry into the Finnish market.
In Sweden, companies spend 400 million euros a year on marketing. In Finland, the amount is estimated to be about half of that, i.e. 200 million.
“In the first year, the amount can be over 200 million euros, when the companies are looking for markets and customers,” says Nummikoski.
Sports clubs and teams are also after market money. In the future, Finnish teams will no longer be mere targets for international gambling companies, but will also receive sponsorship money from them.
“What is clear is that the sponsorship pool in sports will grow significantly,” says Nummikoski.
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“If you have severe gambling problems, there is always an opening to play past the official system. Nothing is perfect.”
Hemp rapids warns against too much optimism that the new model would therefore save the finances of all sports clubs or teams.
“There are also excessive expectations associated with the license system. The companies do not support, but conduct business. Cream peeling may also occur. Some sports and athletes are more interesting than others.”
in Sweden the strong marketing of game companies at first annoyed people. According to Nummikoski, this danger must be avoided in Finland.
Advertising must not get out of hand.
“Companies have to make sure that the irritation threshold of citizens is not exceeded and that the reputation of gambling is not damaged. Veikkaus is not always the most advantageous gambling marketer.”
On the plus side, Nummikoski calculates that all gambling is in a licensed system. The companies pay tax on their activities and prevent gambling addiction.
“The regulation applies to all companies that receive a license. The player must set himself a mandatory money transfer limit. But if you have severe gaming problems, there is always an opening to play past the official system. Nothing is perfect.”