Denmark's Gambling Advertising Reform: What Changes for Influencers Promoting Betting and Casino Sites

Denmark's Gambling Authority (Spillemyndigheden) already applies its marketing rules to anyone who advertises gambling for money — including affiliates and influencers, not just licensed operators. A broad political agreement from October 2025 ("Spilpakke 1") would add a whistle-to-whistle TV ad ban, a minimum age of 25 for anyone appearing in a gambling ad, and explicit sanctioning power over influencers and "gamefluencers" on top of that — but the bill implementing it (L 127) lapsed when Denmark called a snap election in March 2026, so the reform is not yet law.

This is practical guidance from Make Influence, not legal advice. Gambling advertising rules in Denmark are changing quickly right now — always check Spillemyndigheden's own site and Folketinget's current bill list before locking in a campaign.

Two layers of rules: what already applies today, and what's still just an agreement

The most important thing to understand first: there are two entirely separate layers. One is current law — Spillemyndigheden's general marketing rules for gambling, which already cover affiliates and influencers. The other is Spilpakke 1, a broad political agreement from 24 October 2025 that would tighten the rules considerably further — but hasn't been passed into law yet.

According to Spillemyndigheden's own pages on illegal gambling and advertising, the rules apply broadly: all advertising for, and sponsorship of, gambling operators without a Danish licence is prohibited, regardless of who is behind the marketing. If a person or media outlet receives "payment, commission or other financial benefits for referring to or playing on a website", that counts as advertising — and it applies whether or not the site targets Denmark specifically. In practice, that means a Danish affiliate or influencer earning commission for referring visitors to an unlicensed gambling site can already be in breach of the law today, independent of the coming reform.

Spilpakke 1: the political agreement from October 2025

On 24 October 2025, the government and every party in the Folketing except Liberal Alliance entered into the agreement "Spilpakke 1: A More Responsible Gambling Market." Then-Tax Minister Ane Halsboe-Jørgensen described it as the start of "a showdown with a gaming industry that has been allowed to take up too much space" (as quoted in iGaming trade press). The agreement was turned into bill L 127 (2025/1 parliamentary session), which was notified to the European Commission on 13 January 2026, with a standstill period that, per the research behind this article, ran into mid-April 2026.

The whistle-to-whistle ban: advertising around live sport

The centrepiece of the agreement is an extended "whistle-to-whistle ban": gambling operators would not be allowed to advertise on TV or streaming in connection with live sporting events — from ten minutes before the event starts through ten minutes after it ends. Per the Ministry of Taxation's own press release (published around 25 February 2026, when the bill was introduced), that provision was set to take effect 1 July 2026, with a range of the package's other measures taking effect no later than 1 January 2027. As explained below, those dates are no longer reliable as written, because the bill itself lapsed.

The under-25 rule and the ban on well-known endorsers

Spilpakke 1 would ban anyone under 25 from appearing in a gambling advertisement — the same age threshold Alkoholreklamenævnet's own guidelines already apply to alcohol advertising today (see can a Danish influencer advertise alcohol?). The agreement would also ban the use of well-known athletes and other public authority figures who could "rubber-stamp" gambling for money — a parallel to Alkoholreklamenævnet's rules on well-known people, but aimed specifically at authority and credibility rather than fame in general.

What would actually change for influencers and affiliates?

The most significant element for Make Influence's readers is that the agreement explicitly extends the gambling law's marketing rules to cover influencers, affiliates and "others" — and gives Spillemyndigheden the power to sanction them on equal footing with the licensed operators themselves, not just the operators. The government has also flagged a separate committee specifically targeting "gamefluencers" — streamers who gamble for money in front of young audiences, typically on platforms like Twitch.

Several independent iGaming trade outlets have also reported that the agreement would ban commission models where an affiliate's payout is calculated from a player's losses or spend (the classic "revenue share" model) — precisely because that structure puts an affiliate's financial interest at odds with the player's. This specific element of the agreement is not confirmed directly in a primary source this article has been able to read in full, but it is reported consistently by multiple independent trade outlets. If confirmed, it would be worth comparing against the tiered commission structures already used in ordinary affiliate and influencer marketing — a ban on loss-based commission wouldn't touch a flat fee per sale or per lead, only models tied to a player's spend.

Schools, public transport and age filters on social media

The agreement would also ban gambling advertising within a 200-metre radius of schools and youth education institutions, ban it in public transport, and require gambling operators to use age filters on social media so ads don't reach children and young people under 18. None of this is current law as of this article's publication.

Important: the bill lapsed at the March 2026 election — where does it stand now?

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called a general election for 24 March 2026. Under Danish practice, any bill not finally passed lapses the moment an election is called — and that included L 127. A legal scholar quoted by Dansk Markedsføring explained it this way: "the moment an election is called, normal business in both the ministries and the Folketing is suspended." The Social Democrats' then political spokesperson, Christian Rabjerg Madsen, said the party would resubmit the bill if it returned to government.

After the election, the Social Democrats, SF, De Radikale and Moderaterne formed a new government in June 2026 (referred to in the press as the "four-leaf-clover government"). The Social Democrats are therefore part of the government that pledged to resubmit the bill — but this article's research could not find a confirmed, actual resubmission of the bill in the Folketing as of this article's publication date. The takeaway for anyone planning a gambling-related campaign: treat 1 July 2026 and 1 January 2027 as the original bill's dates, not as binding deadlines, and check Folketinget's current bill list before locking a campaign or a commission structure to either one.

Decision framework: what a brand or influencer should do now

IF you're already working with affiliates or influencers on gambling/betting → confirm the operator holds a Danish licence from Spillemyndigheden, and that the disclosure duty is met both on the profile and on every individual post — that applies as current law, regardless of whether Spilpakke 1 passes.

IF you're planning a campaign involving sport or athletes → watch whether the whistle-to-whistle ban has actually been passed before committing to TV or streaming placements around a specific match.

IF you're considering a partnership with a "gamefluencer" who streams gambling for money → be aware this is the segment the reform explicitly targets, and that Spillemyndigheden can already act on illegal marketing today, independent of whether the reform passes.

IF your commission agreement with an affiliate is tied to a player's spend or losses → watch whether a ban on loss-based commission becomes part of the final law, and prepare a flat, action-based alternative as a backup.

Hypothetical worked example: why the commission model could matter

The figures in this example are made up and used purely to illustrate why a change to the commission model could matter financially — it is not a confirmation that the ban has been enacted. An affiliate refers 100 players to a casino in a given month. Under a loss-based model, where the affiliate earns 25% of the players' net losses, and the 100 players collectively lose 200,000 DKK, the affiliate would receive 50,000 DKK. Under a flat, action-based model — say, 300 DKK per player who completes an approved registration and deposit — the same 100 referrals would instead pay the affiliate 30,000 DKK, regardless of how much the players subsequently win or lose. The gap illustrates why banning the loss-based model would materially change an affiliate's financial incentive, without necessarily changing the number of players referred.

Make Influence's operational perspective

In our experience, the biggest risk for a brand or influencer in this space isn't the reform's uncertain status — it's assuming that because Spilpakke 1 isn't law yet, no rules apply at all. That's wrong: Spillemyndigheden's general marketing rules and disclosure duty already apply today, and they already cover affiliates and influencers, not just licensed operators. We recommend treating the coming reform as a signal of which direction oversight is heading — and building campaigns and commission agreements that can withstand a whistle-to-whistle ban and a ban on loss-based commission, even though neither is in force yet.

FAQ

Is it already illegal today for a Danish influencer to advertise gambling?

Not by itself — it depends on whether the operator holds a Danish licence from Spillemyndigheden. Advertising or sponsoring an unlicensed operator is illegal regardless of who does the advertising, and already applies to affiliates and influencers who receive payment or commission for the referral.

Has the whistle-to-whistle ban taken effect?

No, not as of this article's publication date. It was part of bill L 127, which lapsed at the March 2026 general election. It could be resubmitted and passed later, but it is not current law today.

Does the under-25 rule for gambling ads work the same way as for alcohol ads?

The two rules are similar in purpose but not the same thing. Alkoholreklamenævnet's under-25 requirement is already current, self-regulatory practice today. The equivalent under-25 requirement for gambling ads was part of the lapsed bill L 127 and therefore doesn't apply yet.

Can Spillemyndigheden already sanction an influencer today, not just the operator?

Spillemyndigheden's current practice is that its rules against illegal marketing apply to anyone advertising gambling without a licence — including affiliates and influencers. Spilpakke 1 would make that sanctioning power explicit and broader, but the underlying rule that unlicensed marketing is illegal regardless of who sends it already applies.

Why did the bill lapse?

Because Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called a general election for 24 March 2026. Under Danish parliamentary practice, any bill not finally passed lapses the moment an election is called — regardless of how broad the political support behind it was.

Will the reform be resubmitted?

The Social Democrats' then political spokesperson indicated the party would resubmit the bill if it returned to government — which it did in June 2026, alongside SF, De Radikale and Moderaterne. This article's research could not, however, find a confirmed, actual resubmission of the bill in the Folketing as of publication.

Sources and further reading

This article is built on Spillemyndigheden's own pages on illegal gambling and advertising and on the disclosure duty for gambling marketing, the Ministry of Taxation's press releases on Spilpakke 1 (24 October 2025) and bill L 127 (around 25 February 2026), the agreement text "Spilpakke 1: Et mere ansvarligt spilmarked," Dansk Markedsføring's and FSR's coverage of the bill lapsing at the general election, and independent coverage from iGaming trade press (including iGaming Business, SBC News and affpapa). See can a Danish influencer advertise alcohol? and influencer marketing in regulated industries for the equivalent rules in other age-restricted industries, marketing to children and teenagers through influencers for the broader Section 11 framework, and influencer marketing disclosure rules for the general ad-disclosure duty that applies on top of everything covered here.