Ksa opens 2027 tender for Dutch offline horse-racing betting licence

The Netherlands Gambling Authority (Ksa) will open a tender in January 2027 for the country's single offline horse-racing totalisator licence, the regulator said. The current licence, held by ZEbetting & Gaming Nederland B.V., expires on 30 June 2027. The new licence will run from 1 July 2027 to 30 June 2032.

Only one licence is available because the activity is a statutory monopoly, according to the Ksa. The licence permits pari-mutuel (pool betting) wagers on horse races and covers only land-based betting, such as at racecourses and in physical betting offices. Online gambling falls outside the licence and is covered by the remote gambling licensing regime.

The licence holder must pay 10% of gross gaming result each month to the horse-racing sector. This applies to bets placed in that month on the results of harness races and horse races organised in the Netherlands.

Applications will be assessed in two phases. In the first phase the Ksa reviews every application against a set of requirements covering legal form and place of establishment, continuity, internal supervision, reliability, integrity policy, outsourcing policy, incident handling, prevention of excessive participation, gambling addiction and gambling harm, prevention of participation by minors, match-fixing policy, and demonstrated experience in offering offline sports betting.

The second phase takes place only if more than one applicant remains after the first phase. In that case a notary selects the winner by unweighted lottery. Applicants must pay a €40,900 fee for processing the application; it is payable in advance and is non-refundable.

Applications can be submitted from 4 January to 31 January 2027. Information on the application procedure, including the application form and the model licence, is expected to be published on the Ksa website in December.