The market
Spain is a mature, licensed online market regulated by the DGOJ under the 2011 Gambling Act. Federal online GGR was EUR 1.4536bn in 2024, up 17.6% year on year, with online casino the largest vertical. Growth continued into 2025, with Q2 2025 online GGR up 18.6% on the same quarter of 2024. Football betting remains the most popular vertical, followed by slots and other casino games.
Entry is not straightforward. The general licence tender has been closed since 2018, so the practical route in is acquiring a company that already holds a Spanish general licence rather than applying fresh. That makes Spain an M&A market for new entrants despite its open, regulated appearance. Regional land-based gambling is separately regulated by the 17 autonomous communities.
The player base is large, digitally engaged and served by a competitive set of licensed operators, with the market having grown over 270% since 2014.
Regulation and licensing
The DGOJ licenses under Law 13/2011 through a two-tier system of general licences by vertical and singular licences per product. White-label models are excluded, and operators must establish a local presence and meet financial security requirements, with a EUR 2m guarantee per general licence commonly cited. New general licences require a tender, and none has opened since 2018.
Tax is moderate by European standards at 20% of GGR federally, reduced to 10% for operators domiciled in Ceuta or Melilla under Article 48(7) of Law 13/2011, plus a 2% Responsible Gaming Fund contribution. That 20% rate is a genuine advantage against higher-tax neighbours.
Marketing and player rules
Royal Decree 958/2020 sharply restricts advertising, confining broadcast advertising to a 1am to 5am window and banning most sponsorship, though an April 2024 court ruling temporarily relaxed some limits and the government plans to reinstate them. Safer-gambling measures under Royal Decree 176/2023 are fully effective, and a centralised system for cross-operator deposit limits is expected in 2026. RGIAJ is the national self-exclusion register. Affiliate exposure is meaningful given the tight advertising window.
What this means for your plan
I would treat Spain as a market worth entering but only through acquisition. The 20% tax and EUR 1.45bn base are attractive, and the market is still growing double digits, but with the tender closed since 2018 you cannot get a fresh general licence, so the plan has to be buying a licensed operator at a price that works against a 20% tax plus the 2% fund levy. Watch the 2026 centralised deposit-limit system, because it will affect high-value player economics. First move: line up an acquisition target and model it against the 20% rate.
Sources
- Chambers, Gaming Law 2025 Spain, checked 4 September 2026
- Softswiss, how to start an online casino in Spain, checked 4 September 2026
- Gamblingmaps, Spain gambling 2026, checked 4 September 2026