SBC and VNLOK announce multi-year partnership for SBC Summit Europe 2027

SBC and Vergunde Nederlandse Online Kansspelaanbieders (VNLOK), the association representing licensed online gambling operators in the Netherlands, announced a multi-year strategic partnership ahead of SBC Summit Europe, the new European event that debuts at RAI Amsterdam from 19 to 21 April 2027. The agreement is intended to strengthen participation by Dutch licence holders and to support dialogue between companies, regulators and institutional representatives on taxation, player protection, advertising restrictions and action against illegal supply.

Under the agreement, representatives of Dutch operators will contribute to discussions on taxation, consumer protection, advertising limits, channelling demand towards legal supply and countering unauthorised gambling. VNLOK will also contribute to SBC Media editorial activities, with analysis and first-hand accounts of the Dutch sector's development, focusing on regulation, taxation, licensing and commercial sustainability. SBC said the choice of a Dutch association fits its strategy of making Amsterdam a reference point for dialogue between regulated European markets, and that through VNLOK's network the event can involve executives of the main companies licensed in the Netherlands.

Rasmus Sojmark, founder and chief executive of SBC, said the ambition is to make Amsterdam the annual meeting place of the European regulated gambling industry, bringing together licensed operators, regulators, policymakers and the associations shaping its future. He said the Netherlands is an important regulated market and that, through the collaboration with VNLOK, SBC wants to ensure strong representation of Dutch operators so their perspectives contribute to the wider European debate on regulation, player protection and market sustainability. Sojmark also expressed satisfaction at the start of the collaboration and the intention to build a lasting relationship for the benefit of the Dutch and European industries.

Björn Fuchs, president of VNLOK, said the licensed Dutch market has much experience to share but also much to learn from other regulated markets, and that SBC Summit Europe in Amsterdam gives members the chance to do both by engaging with operators, regulators and policymakers from across Europe in their own national market. Fuchs said many of the issues addressed in the Netherlands, from player protection to action against illegal supply, are common to other European jurisdictions.

The collaboration with VNLOK adds to SBC's existing relationships with international legal and regulatory bodies, including the International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) and the International Masters of Gaming Law (IMGL). SBC said the aim is to consolidate SBC Summit Europe as a forum for the European licensed gambling industry, involving operators, affiliates, regulators, institutional representatives and trade associations.

The event is scheduled for 19 to 21 April 2027 at RAI Amsterdam, with more than 8,000 professionals expected, including more than 3,000 representatives of licensed operators, 250 exhibitors and sponsors and 250 speakers. It opens on 19 April with the SBC Leaders Regulatory Forum, an invitation-only meeting for leading industry and regulatory representatives, followed by two exhibition days with four conference stages, one reserved for European regulation. The programme also includes three specialist forums on lottery innovation, player protection and sports integrity, plus networking events.

VNLOK represents online gambling operators licensed by the Dutch authority Kansspelautoriteit (KSA). Its members include Holland Casino, Nederlandse Loterij, bet365, LeoVegas and Unibet. The association says it promotes a safe, fair and responsible online gambling market while supporting effective action against illegal operators, which it considers an obstacle to consumer protection and to the proper functioning of the regulated system.

SBC said the new partnership is intended to strengthen the presence of Dutch operators in the European debate and to support structured dialogue on the conditions needed to ensure legal, competitive and sustainable gambling markets.