Danish gambling spend rises 22.1% for September; betting climbs 64.6%

Denmark's gambling spend rose 22.1% year-on-year for September 2026 after adjustment for GDP growth, according to figures released by the Danish Gambling Authority on 9 November. 

Betting recorded the largest annual increase among the five liberalised segments, rising 64.6%. 

The regulator's statistics put gross gambling revenue (GGR) for the liberalised market at DKK685m ($102.6m) in September. This is a rounded cash total for the month; the 22.1% annual comparison uses 2025 figures adjusted to 2026 levels, rather than a comparison of unadjusted cash amounts.

Betting GGR reached DKK157.2m, compared with DKK95.5m for September 2025 after that adjustment. Online casino GGR increased 17.9% to DKK400.0m, making it the largest segment and accounting for about 58% of the liberalised market's September total.

The remaining segments moved in different directions. Gaming-machine GGR fell 1.0% on the adjusted annual basis to DKK90.6m. Land-based casino GGR rose 8.1% to DKK34.4m and land-based bingo increased 3.2% to DKK2.3m. The monthly cash amounts are reported at current prices, while each percentage compares with an adjusted prior-year figure.

GGR is the amount operators retain after player winnings, before taxes and other costs. It measures the economic value of play and is different from the total amount wagered. The monthly figure covers the liberalised sectors and does not include monopoly lotteries.

The September increase follows a 7.1% adjusted annual decline for August, when betting was down 42.7% against its year-earlier month. September's betting increase compares with a different 2025 base. The authority's release does not identify a cause for the change in betting results between the two months.

Online casino's share continues a longer shift in Danish gambling. The authority's 2025 annual review found that online casino overtook monopoly lotteries as the country's largest gambling sector for the first time. Online play accounted for 73% of gambling that year, compared with 70% in 2024. 

The regulator's statistics page also recorded 76,012 people in ROFUS, Denmark's voluntary self-exclusion register, as of 1 October. This was a register count at a point in time; the authority has not linked it to September's change in GGR.

For August, Danish gambling spend fell 7.1% on the adjusted annual measure as betting declined 42.7%. September's release shows a reversal in both comparisons, with each month's change measured against the corresponding month of 2025.