Operator News

Sweden – Svenska Spel confirms decrease in problem gambling in Sweden

By Phil - 23 March 2023

Swedish state-owned gambling group Svenska Spel says problem gambling has not increased despite the recession and financial vulnerability. On the contrary, the company has seen a slight decrease compared to the same period last year.

“We see that the measures we have introduced in recent years are working,” said Sustainability Manager Kajsa Nylander. ‘But that doesn’t mean we can sit back.’

Svenska Spel’s analysts have reviewed the gaming patterns of their customers during January and February 2023. Compared to the same period in 2022, the proportion of customers who have shown signs of risky gambling has decreased.

In addition, the customers with risk gambling have spent less money on their gambling this year compared to the same period in 2022. This tendency is particularly evident when it comes to online casino.

Svenska Spel’s Head of Sustainability Kajsa Nylander is pleased with the figures, but at the same time urges caution:

“Our analysis gives a positive picture and shows that several of the measures we have introduced in recent years are working. But often it takes time to develop gambling problems, which is why we have once again increased the focus on our “game check conversations”. These are preventive calls to new customers who play for lower amounts, but where we have seen a change in the playing pattern.

“We want to be sure that our customers are playing “for the right reasons”, i.e. that it is done for pleasure and for money they can afford to spare. So even though risk gambling has decreased overall, it is important that we continue with these conversations.

In some of the talks, it has already emerged that the recession is affecting customers. And Kajsa Nylander also points out that Svenska Spel is just one player among many in the gaming market. It is not possible to draw general conclusions about risk gambling among the population at large solely from Svenska Spel’s data.

“Even though we are the largest gaming company, we can only comment on how our customers behave when they play with us. Different gaming companies have different responsible gaming measures. The important thing now is that we continue to follow developments closely.