Italy’s Online Gambling Reforms, Market Data & Industry Outlook

Published: July 31, 2025 | Author: Ron Clarke

At Casin.com, the leading online casino portal, we follow every development in the industry closely. Our goal is to bring our readers, Italian players, the latest updates, market data, and insights, so you always know what’s happening in the world of the Italian and global online casinos.

That’s why we bring you this article, which breaks down the latest reforms in the Italian gambling market and explains what they mean for players and the market as a whole.

Italy is entering a new phase for online gambling regulation. At its heart: a licence tender and regulatory changes set to reshape the market, which is Europe’s largest gaming market.

Licensing changes: a €7 million barrier

Italy’s Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) initiated a radical redesign of its online concession scheme. All existing online licences officially expired on 31 December 2024; a transitional extension allowed operators to continue until the new model launched.

In early summer 2025, ADM received 52 licence applications from 46 applicants—bringing in approximately €365 million in fees. Prospective operators must now pay €7 million per licence per brand for a nine-year period, compared to just €200 000 in the previous round, which took place in 2018.

Extension of the approval deadline

Originally planned to conclude by 17 September 2025, ADM has extended the licence approval process to 12 November 2025 to allow more careful checks and document review. Successful bidders must submit final documentation within 35 days and have six months to launch under the new regulation.

Market consolidation and fewer operators

The jump in licensing costs and tightened eligibility criteria, including audited revenues, AML compliance, strong technical infrastructure, and responsible gaming program funding, means a big reduction in the number of operators. From 81 licensed operators in 2018, the market is expected to shrink to between 30 and 35 by the end of 2025.

Industry experts we talked to expect that this will bring fast consolidation to the Italian market: mergers and acquisitions are already in progress, with Flutter Entertainment’s €2.3 billion purchase of Snaitech as a prime example. This purchase positioned Flutter Entertainment as a holder of around 30% of the Italian market with brands like Sisal, Snaitech, PokerStars and others.

Taxes and new financial rules

Under the new legislation:

• Sports betting will face a 24.5% GGR tax, up slightly from 24%.
• Casino gaming is taxed at 25.5% GGR, an increase from 25%.
• Additionally, operators pay a 3% annual fee on GGR, compared with no annual fee under the previous system.
• A mandatory responsibility pledge requires spending at least 0.2% of GGR on safer gambling initiatives, capped at €1 million a year.

These steps show the government’s insistence on financial solidity and consumer safety.

Enhanced player protections

Italy’s new regulation introduces a variety of player-​protection tools:

• Mandatory deposit, spending and session limits
• More advanced and stricter self exclusion options and automated warning alerts
• Stricter oversight of users aged 18–24—a first in European regulation

Italy’s gambling market in numbers

Total market size

Italy’s entire regulated gambling sector saw a turnover of €157.5 billion in 2024, up 6.6% year on year, generating over €11.5 billion in tax revenue.

Online segment growth

The iGaming sector (remote casino, poker, bingo, sports betting) generated an estimated €3.05 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) in 2024, a 16-17% increase on 2023. Online casino games accounted for around €2.8 billion (around 92% of the iGaming total).

While Italy is now the second‑largest regulated online market in Europe behind the UK, online still represents only ~20–21% of total gambling GGR – an opportunity for future expansion. Europe’s online gambling sector as a whole reached €47.9 billion in 2024, growing 11.6% year on year and approaching nearly 40% of total European gambling revenue.

Forecast and future outlook

By 2026, ADM and the Ministry of Economy project Italy’s online GGR could exceed €5.5 billion, driven by larger, integrated operators operating across digital and retail channels.

The market is expected to be dominated by major players, likely a small group holding over 80% of revenues, thanks to higher barriers to entry and economies of scale.

Meanwhile, land based reform has been delayed until mid 2026. The reform will unify licenses, limit cash deposits to €100/week, require ID verification, and enforce self exclusion tools in retail outlets, a move welcomed by operators that run both physical shops and online platforms

What this means

• For operators: Only financially strong and focused on following the rules companies can hope to succeed. Licence costs, tax burden and responsibility mandates favor those with scale.
• For consumers: Improved consumer protections, standardized tools, and a more regulated advertising and gaming environment signal a safer market.
• For the market: Digital revenue growth remains robust, but reform makes the gap clearer between companies that will stay and those that will leave—marking a new phase of professionalism and consolidation.

What we’re seeing now is a clear shift: Italy is working to improve its gambling system by moving from a fragmented setup with easy entry, to one that’s more structured and built on trust. With new licences set to be finalised in November, the way this market works is about to change in a big way.