Netherlands

1726, according to most historical records from the Netherlands is the year that citizens started to engage in gambling activities, well, at least officially.

Many historians believe that gambling has always been part and parcel of the country’s way of life even before 1726, but its history is just not documented.

Regardless of this, what’s clear from the earliest times to this day is that the country has a huge number of people who love and partake in gambling.

Currently, gambling in the Netherlands is legal only if both the casino operator and the player meet certain requirements stipulated under the law.

Some of these requirements state that a casino operator can only operate legally if it holds a license issued by Netherlands gaming authorities and that a player is only allowed to partake in gambling if s/he has attained the age of majority.

Gambling is largely dominated by brick and mortar casinos. In 1726, the year widely believed to be the year in which the first citizens played games of chance for profits, they played inside the Staatsloterji, a lottery hall.

In subsequent years, the country’s gambling industry advanced as it began to recognize and regulate Netherlands casino gambling games as well as sports betting but this was all done for land-based betting houses and sportsbooks. Regulation of remote gambling only gained ground as recent as 2014.

2020 Gambling Laws in the Netherlands

The Netherlands is a country that is renowned worldwide for being a liberal country, it’s one of the very first countries that legalized marijuana and prostitution. Surprisingly though, the country’s liberal stance did not for many years extend to the gambling industry.

The country took many years in order to arrive at the current gambling legislative frameworks. The National State Lottery established in 1726 regulated only the lotto.

From 1726 up to the mid-1970s, the lotto was the only form of gambling recognized and regulated by the country’s gaming authorities.

In the mid-1970s, Holland Casino was established, and this institution revolutionized the gaming industry in the country. Citizens for the first time could play gambling games and place horseracing as well as sports betting stakes legally.

Unknown to many at the time of its establishment, Holland Casino was to monopolize the gaming industry for years, only to welcome competitors several years after the turn of the millennium.

Netherlands’ conservative approach to gambling can also be seen for remote gaming. While several European countries embraced remote gaming a few years after the turn of the millennium, the country only started to take the necessary steps to regulate Netherlands casino remote gaming in 2011.

In 2011, few legislators backed by foreign major online casino operators mooted the idea of legalizing remote gaming. The proposal, however, was squashed down by the Supreme Court upholding the remote gaming ban.

However, the actions taken by these legislators had set a precedent that was to be followed a couple of years later when the Gaming Authority proposed and drafted a piece of legislation aimed at legalizing online gambling.

A year of debating the proposed act passed before the Online Gambling Act was finally passed in 2014.

Below is a timeline showing the journey taken by the country in regulating different forms of gambling since the earliest times.

The Online Gambling Act of 2014 legalizes remote gaming, but it does come with several restrictions.

One such restriction is the fact that only online casino operators licensed by Netherlands gaming authorities can operate in the country and accept players from the country.

While only allowing approved Netherlands casinos, several offshore resources do accept players from the country; the law enforcement agencies have failed to stamp their authority in dealing with these offshore websites mainly because several banks in the country have established working relationships with offshore casinos and have refused to cut their relationships.

Popular Games & Betting in Netherlands Casinos

The most important thing that gamers want when visiting Netherlands casinos are the games on offer. Casinos both online and land-based (Holland casino outlets) do offer loads of games to gamers. Some of the top games on offer include:

• Slots – Players looking to play at any gambling website can expect to find different kinds of slot games including retro as well as modern slot games.
• Table games – Most casinos offer different kinds and variants of top table and card games. However, when it comes to online betting resources, players need to note that only a handful of casinos do offer poker games as gaming authorities have blacklisted several poker sites that offer international poker tournaments.
• Live casino – Almost all Netherlands casinos do come with live casino sections where players can play games in real-time or place bets during live games.
• Video Poker – Players looking to play video poker can do so freely at any brick and mortar casino. However, only a handful of online Netherlands casinos offer poker games including video poker.

For players looking to play any of these games, they can do so either for real money, or they can try out the games first for free playing in demo mode.

Best Deposit and Withdrawals Methods for Netherlands Casino Players

When playing gambling games at Holland Casino outlets, players can simply use the EUR (local currency) inside the casino when buying their chips and coins from the cashier or dealer.

However, when playing at online resources, players will need first to deposit their funds into the casino account. Players can deposit their funds in EUR; it’s also possible to deposit funds in any of the world’s top currencies, i.e., US Dollar and the British Sterling Pound at most gambling websites.

The same currency that players use in depositing funds is also the same currency that they will use in withdrawing their winnings. To deposit and also withdraw funds, players can use any of the following payment methods:

• Vouchers
• Cryptocurrencies
• Digital wallets
• Bank Transfer
• Debit/Credit Cards.

It’s important for the player that s/he picks the payment method as well as the currency that s/he is comfortable with.

One thing to note is that when it comes to deposits, the processing time is almost instant with all payment methods, but when it comes to withdrawals, the processing time is relatively long, and it varies depending with the payment method being used as well as the casino one is playing at.

Live Betting and Casinos in the Netherlands

Casinos in the country attract thousands of players every month. One of the reasons behind this is the fact that most of these casinos do offer live betting services in which players can gamble in real-time and place their bets as games are being played. Apart from this, here are the other factors that attract players to regulated Netherlands casinos.

Security

When one is registering at an online casino, s/he divulges a lot of personal information including also banking information.

This information if it falls into the wrong hands may be used against the owner as such online casinos must put mechanisms that hinder the loss of personal information.

Casinos registered in the country do protect player information through the use of SSL encryption technology, and it is for this reason that players are attracted to these casinos.

Customer Support

Regardless of how easy navigation is at any casino, often players do encounter some challenges. These may be about failing to find what one is looking for, problems with depositing or withdrawals among others.

In such a case, the player would require to engage the services of a customer service agent to lodge his/her complaint. When playing at any betting resource, customer support is highly responsive, and the agents are professional thus Netherlands players flock to these casinos.

Licensing

When playing on any gaming website, the players need to have the assurance that they are playing at casinos which offer provably fair games.

There is no point in playing games where you know that you are not going to win. As all casinos are licensed hence offering audited games, players have peace of mind when gambling thus they flock to online resources.

Bonus Provision

There is an element in most human beings who love and appreciate freebies, and it is this element that is appeased by the promotions and Netherlands casino bonuses offered. In return, players stay loyal and regularly visit the casinos.

Find the Best Online Casinos in the Netherlands in 2020

When looking for the best Netherlands online casinos, players have to take their time in searching.

Factors to consider when looking for the best Netherlands online casinos include the availability of live casinos sections, the lucrativeness of the promotions and Netherlands casino bonuses offered, licensing, online safety and security as well as how responsive the customer support channels are.

The following are some of the tops recommended Netherlands online casinos listed by several sites:

• Kroon Casino
• Casino Euro
• Orange Casino
• Vera & John Casino
• Betsson Casino, among others.

Before settling for any of the above or any other casino, players are free (and advised) to check out review sites to see how these casinos fare based on the opinions of players who have played at the casinos before.