The Danish Gambling Authority (Spillemyndigheden) has reopened its licensing window for land-based casinos, inviting both fresh entrants and incumbents seeking to renew their decade-long permits. Announced Monday, the move is the first formal opening for new operators this year. Applications, complete with supporting documentation, must reach the regulator by 3 November 2026. Under Consolidated Act No 1182 of 22 September 2025, the authority can grant land-based casino permits running up to ten years.
What the Reopening Means for Operators
The timing matters because Denmark’s physical casino sector is contracting while its digital counterpart pulls further ahead. Any operator weighing an application is doing so against a market where the growth story lives online. Still, the ten-year horizon gives successful applicants a long runway.
- New entrants and renewing licence holders have until 3 November 2026 to file complete applications.
- Permits carry terms of up to ten years, offering unusually long tenure for capital-intensive venues.
- Applicants face a multi-agency consultation covering municipalities, police, and two ministries.
- Financial soundness and proven sector experience sit at the centre of the evaluation.
- The number of permits awarded could reshape ownership across seven existing venues.
How Applications Will Be Judged
Each land-based application triggers a consultation involving the relevant local municipality, the police chief, the Ministry of Taxation and the Ministry of Business and Industry. The Danish Maritime Authority may also weigh in where relevant. That spread of authorities signals how seriously Denmark treats the physical footprint of a casino, a distinction from the lighter-touch online licensing many operators are used to.
Operators will be assessed on financial soundness, demonstrable experience in the sector, and whether they hold enough liquidity to cover operating costs. They must also disclose company ownership and details of senior management. Geographic considerations and the proposed target customer base round out the criteria.
And here the process gets interesting: two applicants with equal balance sheets could still be separated by where they intend to build and whom they intend to serve. What remains less clear is how much weight the regulator assigns to location versus financial strength when the two pull in different directions.
A Digital Shift the Numbers Make Hard to Ignore
Denmark currently hosts seven active land-based casino licences, spread across Copenhagen S, Copenhagen V, Helsingør, Odense, Vejle, Aarhus and Aalborg. By the close of 2025, Spillemyndigheden had issued 1,970 licences across all gambling categories. The land-based casino segment, though, is losing ground.
According to the regulator’s 2025 annual report Spilmarkedet i tal 2025, land-based casinos recorded gross gaming revenue of DKK378 million ($58.26 million), a 5.6% decline that left the segment at just 3% of the total market. Newly liberalised land-based bingo made its first appearance with a modest DKK30 million, under 1% of the whole.
Online tells the opposite story.
| Segment | 2025 GGR | Market Share | Year-on-Year Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online casino | DKK4.31 billion | 38% | +12.1% (+DKK465m), and up 139% since 2012 |
| Land-based casino | DKK378 million | 3% | -5.6% |
| Land-based bingo | DKK30 million | <1% | New segment |
Online casinos generated DKK4.31 billion, or 38% of the market, growing 12.1% year-on-year and more than doubling since 2012. The gap between a segment growing by DKK465 million a year and one shrinking by 5.6% is the backdrop against which every land-based application will be read.
Why Operators Might Still Want In
A shrinking segment is not the same as a dying one. Land-based venues carry brand value, hospitality revenue, and a physical presence that online platforms cannot replicate. For a well-capitalised operator, a ten-year permit in a saturated but stable market offers predictability that regulators in less mature jurisdictions rarely provide. Denmark’s framework is transparent on paper, and the multi-agency vetting, while demanding, filters out undercapitalised bidders early.
There is also the matter of scarcity. Seven licences, seven cities. Any reshuffling of ownership through this window could hand an incumbent a stronger regional position or open a door for an international group that has, until now, focused on Danish online play. The reopening does not expand the map so much as it reprices the existing pins on it.
But the arithmetic is unforgiving. When 38% of a market flows through screens and 3% through casino floors, the strategic question is not whether to hold a land-based licence, but what role it plays in a portfolio that is otherwise digital-first.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the application deadline?
Operators must submit full applications, including all supporting documentation, by 3 November 2026.
How long do the licences last?
Under Consolidated Act No 1182 of 22 September 2025, land-based casino permits can be granted for terms of up to ten years, giving successful applicants a substantial planning horizon for what are typically high-cost venues.
Who reviews each application?
Applications are assessed by Spillemyndigheden after consultation with the relevant municipality, the police chief, the Ministry of Taxation and the Ministry of Business and Industry. The Danish Maritime Authority may be consulted when relevant.
How many land-based casinos operate in Denmark today?
Seven, located in Copenhagen S, Copenhagen V, Helsingør, Odense, Vejle, Aarhus and Aalborg.
Is the land-based market growing?
No. Land-based casino GGR fell 5.6% in 2025 to DKK378 million, while online casino revenue climbed 12.1% to DKK4.31 billion.
What Comes Next
The window stays open until November 2026, and the number of permits Spillemyndigheden ultimately grants will decide whether this is a consolidation event or a genuine expansion. Incumbents will be watching who else files. So will the municipalities, each of which holds a voice in the consultation and a stake in the local outcome. The precedent set here gives the regulator a template it has already used to liberalise bingo, and the same measured approach now applies to a segment that, for all its decline, refuses to disappear.
