Denmark warns parents about gambling-like features in games

Denmark's gambling regulator wants parents to look at what is inside the games their children play, not just how long they play them. On 26 October Spillemyndigheden, the Danish Gambling Authority, launched an awareness campaign about game mechanics that, in its words, "can resemble gambling". The campaign is information only. It announces no new rules, fines or bans, and it does not name any specific games.

"The debate about children and digital media is often about screen time. But it is also important to take an interest in the content of the games and the mechanisms children meet when they game," said director Anders Dorph (our translation).

What the campaign looks like

The campaign's Danish name is "Kasino på børneværelset", roughly "a casino in the children's room". It has three main parts:

• A film in which a child's bedroom turns into a casino.
• Three shopfronts dressed as casinos under the English title "Casino Kids", at Bruuns Galleri in Aarhus, on Vestergade in Odense and on Købmagergade in Copenhagen. They look like an advert for a new Casino Kids venue. No such venue exists; the facades are there to get parents to take an interest in their children's games.
• Online and TV placements on Meta, YouTube, TV2 Play and Folkeskolen.dk.

Berlingske reports that the shopfronts carry the line "Spil for alle dine lommepenge" ("play for all your pocket money"), that they stay up for two weeks, and that the social media part runs until 22 November. The regulator's own release gives no end date or budget.

Where parents are pointed

The campaign sends parents and professionals to StyrPåSpillet.dk, a Danish knowledge site on gaming, gambling elements and gambling addiction, with advice on how to talk to children about it. Berlingske reports that the regulator has also prepared conversation starters for parents about gaming and in-game purchases.

Which mechanics are meant

The regulator's release does not list specific features. Coverage of the campaign gives examples: iGaming Business mentions loot boxes, random reward mechanics and in-game purchases, and Berlingske mentions paid star coins and "lykkeposer" (lucky bags), known in gaming as loot boxes and skins. Berlingske notes that gambling for money is illegal for under-18s in Denmark.

Berlingske also cites surveys from 2026. According to the paper, a Medierådet for Børn og Unge (Danish Media Council for Children and Young People) survey found that 70% of 9- to 11-year-olds play computer games almost daily or more, while 71% of parents said they did not need more knowledge about their child's gaming habits. A Unicef and Center for Digital Pædagogik survey found that 52% of children aged 11 to 16 had tried buying loot boxes. Dorph called the parents' answer "a blind spot". Jakob Engel-Schmidt, Denmark's Minister for Taxation and Growth, told the paper that most parents would think twice if they saw a roulette wheel and a one-armed bandit in the corner of the children's room.

Why it matters

Spillemyndigheden describes its role as contributing to a fair gambling market with "informed citizens and responsible gambling operators" (our translation). This campaign is aimed at the first group: parents, and what their children meet inside ordinary games. It is a separate step from Denmark's planned advertising rules, which we covered in our story on bill L 37 and its limits on gambling ads and affiliate pay. Other Nordic regulators are active on player protection too: in Sweden, an appeal court upheld fines against bet365 and Hillside over deposit limits.