Slot machines and gambling terminals are everywhere around the world, but Finland is the only European country that is still enjoying a monopoly in its gambling business. With just 16 real-life casinos operating, the Finnish people are quite enthusiastic about the casino industry, which has led to the exponential rise in gambling in Finland.
Overview of the Gambling Industry in Finland
There are only three main casino companies in Finland, each of which enjoys a monopoly in their specific areas, namely Veikkaus, RAY, and Fintoto. Veikkaus monopolizes in the lottery games, RAY monopolizes in slot machines, and Fintoto runs its horse racing sector. Although these are the 3 three main regulators, a lot of Finnish people enjoy gambling on other platforms as well. 
The gambling industry in Finland has become a huge part of the leisure industry for the Finnish people. Not only it serves as a huge pastime for millions of people in Finland, but also it boosts the country’s economy to a manifold. To put the gambling industry into proper place and to be at par with the nation’s regulation and legislations, the EU has made a lot of efforts to standardize the betting sports and gambling in Europe.
Reasons Why Online Gambling is Thriving in Finland
Learn more about the obvious reasons that help the online casinos to thrive in Finland are discussed hereunder:
1) Finnish Government Does Not Allow Foreign Gambling Companies to Enter the Finnish Market
The Finnish government is too strict when it comes to allowing foreign casino companies to take over the Finnish market. Instead, the Finnish government has standardized more gambling options to retain the customers so that they do not feel lured at any foreign casino company. To offer the players high entertainment games, the Finnish gambling agency, Veikkaus Oy, has recently joined hands with the International Games Technology (IGT).
IGT provides all the installation and support services to Veikkaus. There is also a full library of slots games, table games, and video poker services for the players to enjoy. 
2) There Are No Nuances of “problem Gambling.”
Due to the presence of only one internet gambling company in Finland, there is no competition in the casino world, which assures better protection to the betters from gambling abuse or problem gambling. Therefore, gambling enthusiasts can feel at peace, and more and more customers join the community.
3) Gambling for a Cause
The gambling industry in Finland is directly controlled by the State, and the proceeds go for the welfare of Finnish society. Therefore, it is always in the minds of the Finnish people that even if they lose in gambling, somebody else will win as the whole revenue goes to the welfare societies. This moral cause helps the Finnish gambling industry to expand every day.
Overview of Veikkaus Oy
Finnish people spend around EUR 2 billion every year on a variety of casino games, as per reports. But in Finland, the gambling industry is a state-owned monopoly, which is run by the betting agency of the Finnish government named Veikkaus Oy. Veikkaus Oy came into existence on January 1, 2017, after merging three betting agencies. 
Veikkaus Oy is run for a noble cause, and it distributes its profits for the welfare of the society at large. 53% of the profits go to the Ministry of Education and Culture, that is spent on youth projects like science, arts, or physical education. 4% of the profits go to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and the remaining 43% goes to the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
Therefore, gambling, casinos, and betting in Finland are looked over as “patriotic endeavors” because the profit earned from gambling and betting sports is spent on various government programs that help the Finnish people. Finnish gambling thus also stands as an inspiration for other countries to revamp their gambling models and use them for the welfare of their countries.
Wrap Up
However, despite the government’s efforts to monopolize gambling in Finland, the monopoly is changing with the private online casinos trying to steal the limelight by offering hundreds and thousands of casino gambling options; everywhere, digitization is taking over. However, despite the pervasiveness of online casinos trying to take over the Finnish gambling industry, the Veikkaus will certainly adapt to these changing scenarios and clawback players, either by pursuing a legislative agenda or by offering more online casino options to the Finnish gambling enthusiasts.
