Paf and Facebook Launch Pilot in Switzerland to Block Illegal Advertising

Paf and Facebook will launch a pilot in Switzerland to prevent unlicensed gaming operators and their affiliates from reaching Swiss players on the platform. Paf announced it on Wednesday at the SBC Summit in Lisbon; Jesper Eliasson, Business Development Director of Paf, stated that the pilot should start next week.

The Paf and Facebook Pilot in Switzerland: Scope and Objectives

The declared goal of the pilot is for Paf to provide Facebook (part of Meta Platforms) with data that allows it to differentiate regulated operators from unlicensed ones in advertising aimed at Swiss users. According to Paf, the information will include documents related to gaming licenses and the URLs of operators and their affiliate networks.

Paf has explained that the project is aimed at both gaming companies and their affiliate partners. The initiative stems from Paf's concern about the ability of offshore operators to evade the checks of social media platforms and the added complexity due to the diversity of licensing regimes in European countries.

Why Switzerland Matters and Paf's Position on Unlicensed Operators

Switzerland is a relevant market for Paf, and the company presents it as a testing ground. Paf acts as a technology and commercial partner of Grand Casino Luzern; the service mycasino.ch, owned by the casino, began operating in 2019. Paf reported that mycasino.ch currently records an annual turnover of 100 million euros and holds more than 30% of the Swiss online gaming market.

Eliasson argued that unlicensed operators represent a competitive problem because they do not bear the compliance costs associated with responsible gaming measures and national regulation. “I don't want someone who hasn't paid for a license or doesn't apply responsible gaming measures sharing the market with us,” Eliasson said during the presentation in Lisbon.

How Facebook/Meta Will Use Licensing Data to Monitor Ads

Paf explained that the data sharing with Meta aims to enhance the platform's ability to identify and block ads from unlicensed actors. The Finnish company will provide Meta with evidence of licenses and lists of URLs that Meta can incorporate into its advertising control systems.

Paf added that the pilot does not require significant financial investments: the company's contribution is mainly limited to time and conversations, according to Eliasson. The executive also admitted that there is no guarantee of success for the project.

“Our contribution is mainly time and conversations,” said Jesper Eliasson, emphasizing the exploratory nature of the pilot.

Paf plans to include the Swiss gaming authority in the project to create a framework for cooperation between Facebook, the regulator, and licensed operators, ensuring that license checks can be integrated into social media advertising oversight.

Relationship with Litigation and Alternative Approaches in the Sector

Paf's collaboration with Meta comes at a time when some actors have opted for litigation to address illegal advertising on social platforms. The Dutch association VNLOK sued Meta over illegal gaming ads on Facebook and Instagram after years of attempts to resolve issues through dialogue.

Paf chose a different path: instead of initiating legal actions, the company has opted to build a direct cooperation mechanism with Meta. Eliasson stated that Paf invests “significantly” in customer acquisition through Facebook and believes that Meta shares the interest of keeping illegal actors out.

Possible Implications and Applicability in Other Markets

Paf intends for the model tested in Switzerland to be scalable and applicable in other European markets if the experiment proves useful. The company views digital platform oversight as an area where cooperation between regulators and licensed operators could effectively shut down the black market.

Success in Switzerland, according to Paf, depends on effective collaboration with Meta and the Swiss regulatory authority. If the pilot allows Meta to detect and stop more ads from unlicensed operators without significant additional investments, Paf believes this approach could be transferred to other countries.

Operational Considerations for Operators and Regulators

For the pilot to work, Meta must be able to integrate evidence of licenses and URLs into its existing advertising monitoring tools. From Paf's perspective, the main technical and operational barrier is that various national regulatory regimes complicate the automatic assessment of whether an operator is entitled to advertise in a specific country.

Paf has previously called for greater coordination between regulators and operators to improve detection of the illegal market and presents this project as a practical test of that proposal. The Swiss pilot would not require, according to the company, significant financial investments on its part; instead, it would demand integration work and dialogue with Meta and the Swiss authority.

Reactions and Context in the Industry

The announcement appeared in Lisbon during the SBC Summit and was picked up by specialized media. Among the sources cited in the coverage are iGaming Business, iGaming Expert, and SBC News, with publication dates ranging from June 23 to October 1, 2026.

Paf expects a coordinated solution to reduce the presence of unlicensed operators in paid channels and for authorities to verify the legitimacy of advertisers through structured licensing data. The company acknowledges uncertainty about the effectiveness of the collaborative approach compared to legal action but aims to test the concept where it has a significant presence: Switzerland.

Press references: iGaming Business – “Paf teams up with Facebook on Swiss pilot to target black market ads” (1.10.2026); iGaming Expert – “PAF reveals potentially groundbreaking Meta collaboration in Switzerland” (30.9.2026); SBC News – “Paf Director: legal markets are ‘defenceless’, but we can solve it” (23.6.2026).