Restrictions came into force in Sweden on July 2, which will be valid until the end of the year . They include a $537 weekly deposit limit for online casinos. The restrictions are aimed at protecting players during the lockdown. The measures have not affected horse racing or sports betting.

Ewout Vierda, General Counsel for Online CasinoVideoslots, believes this decision is belated because as in the rest of Europe, quarantine measures are gradually easing. In an interview with Gambling Insider, Vierda said: “It is too late to fight the pandemic by changing or introducing new rules. A better solution would be to set limits on losses instead of uniform limits on deposits.”

The General Counsel questioned the government's motives behind these measures: “The Swedish government has failed to show that there has been a significant increase in activity and a shift towards riskier gambling. Sports betting is about as risky as online casinos. Therefore, the focus of the Swedish government on the gambling industry is incomprehensible. But you have to remember that horse racing is still a government monopoly.”

Swedish online gambling operators have alreadyrequesting the lifting of restrictions on casino deposits .