Ksa launch campaign for conversations around gambling harm

The Netherlands’ gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has launched two public-awareness campaigns aimed at encouraging earlier conversations about gambling and making it easier for young people to seek help.

The KSA said on Monday that the initiatives focus on teenagers and young adults, as well as the parents, relatives and friends who may be able to spot signs of harm.

The OpenOverGokken campaign, launching in early November, is directed at parents of teenagers and young adults aged about 16 to 25. It encourages caregivers to discuss gambling before problems arise, treating it as a subject to raise alongside issues such as sex and online safety.

The campaign draws on OpenOverGokken.nl, an information portal introduced in 2025 that offers independent information and tools to help parents start conversations.

An emphasis on early recognition 

A second initiative, promoted under the Gambling Stop (Gokstop) banner, targets young adults who are already experiencing gambling problems or who may be at increased risk. 

Its message is that stopping does not have to be a response to a crisis: the decision can be made at any time. The campaign also encourages family and friends to recognise possible problems and support a first step towards the national self-exclusion and support programme.

Together, the campaigns move away from earlier Gokstop messaging focused on life after stopping. Instead, they emphasise early recognition and accessible help-seeking, using everyday situations to make the first step seem manageable.

The regulator points to social media, online video, advertising and in-game content as common ways young people encounter gambling. In this context, local politician Meryam Sümer of the CDA (Christian Democratic Party) has called for national action to raise the minimum legal age for online gambling from 18 to 24. 

The KSA is expected to publish follow-up data or evaluation findings. Measures of effectiveness could include changes in public awareness, use of OpenOverGokken.nl and registrations with Gokstop.

A focus on youth gambling

The campaign comes only a week after the KSA published its annual and semi-annual reports, which found that people aged 18-23 accounted for about 22% of legal gambling accounts, despite representing roughly 9.2% of the adult population. For the first half of 2026, the average monthly loss on accounts used by 18-23-year-olds was €34. 

Even more prominently, the KSA found in an earlier survey that there was a pronounced surge in account registrations on or shortly after users’ 18th birthday. In 2024-25, 11% of accounts opened by 18-year-olds were registered on their birthday, with 38% registered within a month.