With every new technical upgrade, more and more things seem to crop up. This is especially true when it comes to casinos. Just when people got used to land-based casinos, all of a sudden digital ones cropped up and now Sweden is looking at ending all land-based casinos by 2026, which is the end of an era.
Why the Government Is Phasing Out Casinos
The big question is “Why?”. Why would Sweden want to do this? Firstly, parliament said that land-based venues “no longer served their purpose,” largely because players seem to prefer online games. Then there is also the thing about the introduction of reforms in mid-2023, culminating in a full ban on new land-based casino licenses as of 2026.
Industry Voices Raise Concerns
A lot of people agree that brick-and-mortar casinos were always going to have to die out, once online ones became so popular. However, nonetheless, the approach Sweden is taking is being criticised.
Gustaf Hoffstedt of the Swedish Trade Association for Online Gambling (BOS) has been particularly vocal about it. He maintains that land-based venues might have survived if private operators had been allowed to compete.
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Concerns About the Black Market
Sweden’s gambling regulator, Spelinspektionen, has also mentioned their concern about the consequences. The risk that players might shift toward unlicensed operators is real, especially once physical casinos vanish. If you’re a keen gambler and you suddenly can’t go visit a physical casino anymore but you’re not very well versed with online ones, chances are that you’re going to make rookie errors that you wouldn’t have even thought about.
Illegal gambling could grow unless enforcement is tightened before and after the 2026 deadline. If Sweden wants to do away with land-based casinos, that’s fair; however, they then also need to be realistic about what will follow, which is that players will go to online games. This means that they need to make the rules, laws and regulations around online gambling a lot safer.
Reports from the national lottery operator ATG show that licensed platforms accounted for only 69–82% of gambling activity in Q4 2024, short of the 90% target set by regulators. Many unlicensed platforms even replicate trusted brand services, use the same technical providers and allow Swedish bank deposits via BankID, making them dangerously accessible.
Economic Impact on Casinos and Communities
Casino Cosmopol once operated four locations but two closures in 2024 reduced its presence to just the Stockholm venue. The business faced a revenue collapse, from a once‑healthy segment into a loss‑making unit due to low attendance and shifting consumer behavior.
It’s crazy to think about closing such a big establishment because a lot of people work there. There is the question of staffing and how the people who are being released from their work contracts will manage after this era ends.
Possible Future Alternatives
It’s impossible to look into the future and actually know what’s going on. Critics like Hoffstedt suggest that a liberalized, competitive market could have offered an alternative path. Private casinos operating alongside state-run venues could have driven innovation, service improvements and greater consumer choice. He points out that cities such as Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö might well have supported private operators if market rules were opened up.
Industry-Wide Implications
Sweden’s move could influence gambling policy across Europe. Governments looking to trim costs and modernize gambling may see the Swedish example as a blueprint, especially where state-run casinos underperform and digital alternatives offer low-cost scalability.
Yet the policy also raises broader questions about responsible gambling and regulation. Without physical venues under strict compliance, the burden shifts to digital monitoring, licensing and enforcement to prevent illicit activity and ensure consumer protection.
Key Takeaways
What should you take away from all of this? It’s a lot of information to digest, so try to just remember the below:
- Sweden will permanently close all state-run land-based casinos by January 1, 2026
- The government cites declining profits and shifting consumer habits as the main reasons
- Critics say the lack of competition hurt Casino Cosmopol’s ability to evolve
- Online gambling is booming in Sweden but concerns about unregulated play remain
- Some believe a liberalized market could have saved the land-based casino industry
In the end, the decision reflects just how quickly the gambling world is changing. It’s also interesting to see just how quickly Sweden is reacting. A lot of countries find themselves in the same position but aren’t willing to buckle down as much or as severely as Sweden.
That’s It
Sweden needs to make sure that it has a clear and helpful guide on how players should engage with online casinos. For those who are used to physical ones, this is going to be a big step. If Sweden wants to take something away, it needs to also give back.
It’s going to be a big job for those who are now going to be in charge of regualting an online market, which is very difficult.
Good luck to Sweden in their big task to manage all of this from 2026.