Veikkaus announced Ilkka Kosola’s appointment as chief financial officer and executive management team member on 4 May 2026. The company said he will take up the role by the end of September 2026, ahead of Finland’s planned move towards a multi-licence framework.
Kosola’s appointment strengthens Veikkaus’s finance leadership ahead of Finland’s planned multi-licence framework.
The day’s most important stories, free. One email a day.
Finland’s National Police Board confirmed 12 gambling licence approvals ahead of the market opening on 1 July 2027. It said it had received 79 applications by 26 October and recorded no rejections; Veikkaus had applied but was not among the confirmed licensees.
Betsson announced a five-and-a-half-year sponsorship of HJK Helsinki starting 1 July 2027 and running to 31 December 2032, covering both the men's and women's first teams. HJK said it is the largest commercial agreement in Finnish football history; the value was not disclosed.
Betsson announced a five-and-a-half-year sponsorship agreement with HJK Helsinki, one of Finland's main football clubs. The partnership will begin on 1 July 2027 and run until 31 December 2032, the company announced. According to the club, it is the most important commercial agreement in the history of Finnish football. The financial value of the agreement was not made public.
Finland’s National Police Board reported that the Gambling Administration had issued four prohibition decisions and imposed six conditional fines by mid-2026 for illegal gambling marketing under the Lotteries Act. Corporate conditional fines range from €100,000 to €1.2 million, while individual fines range from €30,000 to €200,000. The market is due to open to operators in July 2027.
Finland's National Police Board said the Gambling Administration has issued four prohibition decisions and imposed six conditional fines this year over breaches of the Lotteries Act concerning marketing of unauthorised gambling services in mainland Finland. The board announced the figures on Wednesday, according to its statement. The measures cover gambling promotions on websites, social media and live-streaming platforms.
The House of Lords Liaison Committee urged the UK government to ban gambling advertising. Its follow-up report also called on ministers to drop the aim of growing the licensed industry and return to a policy of tolerating gambling without promoting it. Industry figures and researchers dispute the report’s treatment of survey data, advertising measures and illegal-market risks.
The House of Lords Liaison Committee has urged the government to ban gambling advertising "as soon as practicable" and to abandon its aim of growing the licensed industry, in a follow-up report published on 17 September. The committee said there is "no evidence for the safety of gambling advertising" and that voluntary measures "have not gone far enough". The government has two months to respond.
Finland’s National Police Board had received 75 applications by 22 September, up from 50 in June, as the country prepares to open its gambling market to licensed operators. Each applicant must pay a €29,000 processing fee; no licences have yet been granted, and the first are due to take effect on 1 July 2027.
Finland's National Police Board had received 75 gambling licence applications by 22 September, up from 50 in June, as the country prepares to move from Veikkaus' monopoly to a licensed market. No licences have been granted so far, and the first licences under the new framework are due to take effect on 1 July 2027.