Betsson France wins ANJ poker licence and joins shared pool as French poker revenue grows

France’s gambling regulator has licensed Betsson France for online poker and cleared it to share liquidity with Italy, Spain and Portugal. The Nordic operator enters a regulated poker market where player numbers are rising fast but revenue per account is falling.

Betsson France’s authorisation takes the form of an online ‘jeux de cercle’ licence, the category that covers poker. Its liquidity clearance rests on Article 14 II of Law No 2010-476 of 12 May 2010. Both decisions were published in the Journal officiel, issue JORF No 0248, on 23 October 2026.

The operator applied on 22 June 2026. The licence runs for five years and can be renewed. It cannot be transferred, and the poker offer must run on betsson.fr. A separate decision, No 2026-PR-120, dated 16 October 2026, approved Betsson France SA’s ‘plateforme poker’ software.

Betsson adds poker to its French sports betting licence

The regulator’s list of licensed operators dated 15 October 2026 appeared in the same Journal officiel issue as the decisions. It shows Betsson France SA holding both a fixed-odds sports betting licence and a poker licence. The company has held its sports betting licence since 21 September 2023.

Betsson plans to launch on Playtech’s iPoker network. The poker launch builds on its sportsbook, and the company has pointed to the quality of the iPoker product. Its partner, Casino Secret founder Nadir Ounissi, called the licence an important milestone for Betsson in France. Betsson says the move is about the French poker market as it stands, not a bet on France legalising online casino.

The shared pool rests on an agreement signed on 6 July 2017 by four regulators. They were France’s ARJEL (now the ANJ), Spain’s DGOJ, Italy’s ADM and Portugal’s SRIJ. Shared tables need the agreement of every regulator involved and approved gaming software. Betsson France must also inform the ANJ of any change to its liquidity-sharing contract, such as a new party joining or the contract ending.

Poker is outgrowing a flat French gambling market

Betsson arrives as poker outpaces the wider sector. Gross gaming revenue across French gambling, excluding casinos and gaming clubs, was €5.66bn in the first half of 2026. That was 0.5% higher than a year earlier, compared with growth of 4.1% the year before.

Poker’s half-year gain followed a flat first half of 2025. Sit & Go tournaments brought in €202m, or 70% of the total. For the whole of 2025, poker revenue reached €525m, up 6.5% after a 2.1% fall in 2024. All of that annual increase came from tournament formats.

The audience is widening faster than spending. On average, each active account generated €126 in the first half, against €153 a year earlier, according to European Gaming. That is consistent with a larger base of players each spending less. In 2025, active poker accounts reached 2.5 million, up 16.5%, and unique players reached 1.9 million, up 15.1%. That was the fastest growth of the three online segments.

Before going live, Betsson France must tell the ANJ that its data archiving system is up and running. Its licence then runs until 15 October 2031.