Veikkaus to launch Viabet in Finland and Denmark on 1 July 2027

Veikkaus will launch the Viabet brand in Finland and Denmark on 1 July 2027, timed with the opening of the Finnish online gambling market and the end of the state monopoly in that segment. The operation will be carried out through a commercial alliance with Viaplay Finland and Viaplay Denmark; the launch date coincides with the entry into force of the new regulatory framework.

Structure of the alliance

Veikkaus will combine its gaming technology, customer experience capabilities and responsible gaming tools with the sports assets and Scandinavian footprint of Viaplay Finland and Viaplay Denmark. The collaboration includes integrating selected Viaplay content into the betting product, while Veikkaus will supply sports data and analytics to support Viaplay coverage. The cooperation aims to build a differentiated, scalable offering based on Finnish experience.

"Viabet is an important strategic step for Veikkaus and a concrete demonstration of how we are progressing our international growth ambitions," said Olli Sarekoski, President and CEO of Veikkaus.

Change of model: from B2B to consumer

Veikkaus's international operations have to date been predominantly B2B, with a prominent B2G client: Fennica Gaming, which provides technology services to the sector in 21 countries. The Viabet launch represents Veikkaus's move into consumer betting in selected markets.

"We already have a large collaboration with Veikkaus in our Finnish sports production, and we look forward to expanding it through this new commercial agreement," said Mikael Svensson, CEO of Viaplay Finland.

Jonas Reuter, Executive Vice President of International Business at Veikkaus, noted that the opening of Finland's real-money gambling market creates a growth opportunity and that Viabet allows the company to convert experience into a scalable consumer business.

Status of licences in Finland

The National Police Board of Finland has approved 12 of the 79 online gambling licence applications submitted so far; it has not recorded rejections among processed applications. Veikkaus has also applied for an online licence but is not yet listed among approved operators. The operator will retain the monopoly on lotteries, scratchcards and land-based gaming machines.

For regulatory context, the market opening and licence conditions are part of the public debate on liberalisation, and the new brand debuts the same day the legal framework changes. See related details on the process in [regulation](/regulation) and the impact on betting in [sports](/sports) and on the B2B offer in [b2b](/b2b).