Stake Targets LatAm Growth with Mexico Launch
Operator Stake has officially entered the Mexico gambling market with its new domain, stake.mx. This strategic move is part of the company's broader LatAm expansion and is timed to build a presence before Mexico co-hosts the 2026 football World Cup.
The company will operate under the licence of intermediary Uno Capali, with authorization from SEGOB, Mexico's gambling regulator. This follows Stake's successful entries into other regional markets, including Colombia in 2023, Peru in 2024, and securing a licence in Brazil.
Jarrod Febbraio, a Director at Stake, noted that Mexico's strong sports culture and high digital adoption make it a prime target. “Mexico is an important and exciting market for us,” Febbraio stated. “It gives us the opportunity to establish a strong presence ahead of one of the biggest sporting events in the world.”
Navigating Mexico's Regulatory Landscape
The Stake Mexico launch comes at a complex time for the country's gaming sector. The market is still governed by laws from 1947, and a new 50% tax rate was implemented at the start of 2026. Experts like H2 Gambling Capital's Ed Birkin have pointed out that the outdated regulatory framework is limiting investment despite the country's large population.
Dutch Gambling Advertising Rules Under Scrutiny
A new academic study has highlighted significant compliance issues with Dutch gambling advertising rules on Meta's platforms. Research from the City University of Hong Kong and the University of Bristol found that 11.2% of 277 analyzed ads on Facebook and Instagram targeted users aged 18 to 23, a practice banned by Dutch law.
The study revealed a notable difference in compliance between operator types. Online gaming licensees were largely compliant, while land-based operators showed a much higher rate of breaches.
| Operator Type | Non-Compliance Rate |
|---|---|
| Online Licence Holders | 7.3% |
| Offline (Land-Based) Licence Holders | Nearly 30% |
State-controlled operator Holland Casino was found to have run campaigns that included users younger than 24. One such campaign reportedly reached over 21,000 Dutch users in the prohibited 18–24 age group.
Calls for Tighter Enforcement and Pre-Authorisation
The researchers identified several causes for these breaches, including reliance on Meta’s automated tools that default to an age-18 start, human error, and reporting limitations. To address these issues, the report suggests several changes.
More radically, the report proposes tighter enforcement measures, including the pre-authorisation of gambling adverts.
Recommendations also include that Meta should provide single-year age data and that the Dutch regulator, KSA, should clarify advertising rules for land-based licensees. This follows a ban on untargeted ads and sports sponsorships that came into effect in 2023.
Veikkaus Appoints New CFO for Post-Monopoly Era
In Finland, the state-controlled gambling operator Veikkaus has named Ilkka Kosola as its next Chief Financial Officer, effective at the end of September. This key appointment comes as the company prepares for a major transformation in Finland online gambling.
Kosola joins from Reaktor and brings extensive experience in building digitally enabled finance functions, including the integration of AI. His appointment is seen as crucial for the company's 2030 strategy, which involves navigating the end of its online monopoly in 2027 when the market opens to competition.
Veikkaus will be split into two entities: one maintaining a monopoly on lottery and retail, and another competing in the newly licensed online market. The new Veikkaus CFO will play a key role in this transition and the company's goal of international expansion through its B2B subsidiary, Fennica Gaming. Olli Sarekoski, CEO of Veikkaus, said Kosola's experience makes him an “excellent fit for Veikkaus as we navigate this period of significant transformation.”
