The market
France is the fourth largest gambling market in Europe, with total gross gaming revenue of EUR 14bn in 2024 according to the ANJ. The online market reached a record EUR 2.6bn in 2024, up 12%, driven overwhelmingly by online sports betting at nearly EUR 1.8bn, up 19% on the back of the Euro football tournament and the Paris Olympics. Online poker was EUR 493m and online horse betting EUR 339m. The market has 2.6 million active online accounts across licensed verticals.
The critical point for an operator is what is not there: online casino. Slots, roulette and blackjack are explicitly outside the licensable scope and remain prohibited. France and Cyprus were, on the current administration’s own account, the only EU members where online casino was outlawed. A 2024-2025 push to legalise online casino, with the ANJ estimating a potential market of EUR 748m to EUR 1.5bn, was rejected after intense lobbying by land-based casinos tied to nearly 200 French communes.
The licensed online player base is betting-led and seasonal, concentrated with Betclic, Winamax, Unibet and a handful of others.
Regulation and licensing
The ANJ licenses online sports betting, horse race betting and poker under the 2010 law as modernised by the 2019 ordinance. The agrément is granted for five years and is renewable. Online casino cannot be licensed at all, because no legal framework allows the ANJ to issue casino licences.
Betting economics are demanding. The online sports betting social contribution rose to 15% of GGR from 1 July 2025, and France taxes both turnover and GGR across products, producing a high effective burden. The ANJ mandated that all operators submit aggressive action plans to reduce problem gambling by 2027, and detection of at-risk players rose sharply, with operators identifying over 89,000 at-risk players in 2025.
Operating unlicensed online casino carries real enforcement: the ANJ blocks unlicensed sites via ISPs, though French players still reach offshore sites via VPN or direct URL, and there is no prosecution of players.
Marketing and player rules
Advertising is permitted for the licensed verticals but is tightly supervised, with mandatory responsible-gambling messaging and ANJ oversight of promotional design. The ANJ can fine licensed operators up to 5% of turnover for breaches. National self-exclusion runs through the interdiction de jeu system, and moderator tools are mandatory. Affiliate exposure is real given the ANJ’s control of advertising standards.
What this means for your plan
For a casino-led operator, France is closed, and I would not build a plan around a legalisation that has already been rejected once. If you run a sportsbook or poker product, France is a large, disciplined market worth a licence, but you must model the 15% social contribution and the turnover taxes carefully because the effective rate is high. Watch for a renewed online casino bill, but treat it as a possibility, not a plan, and do not commit spend against it until a text passes. First move: if you are betting or poker, apply; if you are casino, look elsewhere.
Sources
- ANJ, Bilan du marché des jeux d’argent et de hasard 2024, checked 4 September 2026
- ANJ, Rapport annuel 2024, checked 4 September 2026
- Legalpilot, France gambling laws 2026, checked 4 September 2026