Nearly half of underage testers place sports bets at Swiss outlets, new report finds
In its 2025 evaluation, the Intercantonal Gambling Supervisory Authority (Gespa), found that player-protection measures used by the country’s two lottery operators are broadly effective online, but identified continuing risks in sports betting and serious weaknesses in age controls at retail outlets.
Switzerland’s gambling regulator also said that online platforms allow operators to apply and assess protections more precisely than land-based sales channels.
What is the report?
According to Article 84 of the Federal Act on Money Gaming (BGS), operators are legally required to submit an annual report on the measures around player protection and the effectiveness of their implementation.
The operators involved are Swisslos, the state-approved lottery for German-speaking Switzerland and Loterie Romande, the lottery operator for the Francophone region.
Gespa’s evaluation is an independent review of the operators’ own reports, which is not mandatory but is published with the consent of the operators involved.
According to the report, mystery shopping commissioned by the watchdog found that nearly half of 200 underage test customers succeeded in placing a sports bet at a retail outlet. Self-service terminals were more permissive than clerk-assisted sales.
The mystery-shopping results highlighted a substantial gap in youth protection at physical outlets. Gespa and the operators are discussing technical measures, including identity scanners for self-service terminals. Staff training, further mystery shopping and tools to improve age checks have also been introduced.
Sports betting records the highest losses
Online gambling accounted for 24% of the two operators’ gross gaming revenue in 2025, with the remaining 76% generated through physical sales points.
Average monthly net losses among active online players were broadly stable year on year.
Swisslos reported monthly loss averages ranging from CHF47 ($581) to CHF83, excluding a large jackpot-related outlier. Loterie Romande reported averages of CHF56 to CHF75.
Sports betting, available as part of Swisslos under the brand Sporttip, remained the highest-risk product category, recording the highest average losses and the largest share of players with monthly losses above CHF2,000.
Sports bettors also tend to be younger and predominantly male. It is a demographic considered more vulnerable to gambling harm in addiction research according to Gespa.
Gespa said the risks associated with sports betting required continued attention, particularly as products introduce features such as cash-out, which may encourage impulsive play or create an exaggerated sense of control.
Limits and monitoring
Both operators applied mandatory monthly loss ceilings to several product categories, including caps of CHF2,000 and CHF900 for particular games. A monthly deposit limit of CHF10,000 applies across products.
Only a small proportion of players reached the applicable limits. Swisslos reported that 82 players – 0.23% of those subject to a CHF2,000 monthly cap – hit it at least once. Loterie Romande recorded 160 such players, or 1%.
Temporary self-exclusion was used by 0.57% of active Swisslos online players and 0.6% of active Loterie Romande players during 2025.
Automated early-warning systems flagged 3,048 Swisslos players, equivalent to 0.47% of active users, and 220 Loterie Romande players, or 0.12%.
Swisslos imposed 76 gambling bans under Article 80 of the Federal Act on Gambling in 2025, up from 39 in 2024. Loterie Romande imposed 65, compared with 56 the previous year.
Notably, many bans followed voluntary requests from players.
Changes introduced by operators
Loterie Romande replaced its previous Playscan tool with a monitoring system from Sustainable Interaction. The new system uses recent play data and self-test results to generate a seven-level risk score, which is shown to players.
Swisslos introduced deposit-flow warnings for customers attempting to make a fifth deposit within a week and expanded the information and blocking tools available to them, including recommendations for software such as Gamban and Net Nanny.
The regulator also welcomed a Swisslos measure to reduce the maximum monthly loss limit for Sporttip customers aged 18 to 21 to CHF1,000. The change was introduced in March 2026.
Operator profit for 2025
Swisslos and Loterie Romande reported a combined net profit of CHF814 million in 2025, down 4.7% from CHF854 million in 2024.
Swisslos’ net profit decreased by 5.7%, to CHF562 million whilst Loterie Romande’s net profit fell 2.3% to CHF252 million.
Under Swiss federal regulations, these net profits are distributed by cantons for public benefit sectors including culture, social services and sport.
In 2026-27, Swisslos plans to take part in a research project with cantonal and industry partners to examine the behaviour of banned players and the effectiveness of exclusions.
The Federal Office of Statistics is also conducting a nationwide survey of gambling behaviour in 2026, with results expected in 2027.