News
GGL has further illegal gambling sites blocked
Since May 2026 German internet access providers have had to block gambling sites without a German licence by DNS order of the GGL. The change in the law closes a gap the Federal Administrative Court exposed in 2025: until then the regulator had no power to enforce blocking orders against access providers.
By the Casinohafen deskUpdated: 3 November 2026Checked: September 2026
What changed in May 2026
Since May 2026, internet access providers such as Telekom, Vodafone and 1&1 have had to block access to gambling sites without a German licence via DNS blocking whenever the GGL issues an order. When a user requests a blocked domain, the DNS server no longer returns the real IP address and instead redirects to a GGL notice page.
The change closes a legal gap: in 2025, Germany's Federal Administrative Court ruled that the GGL had no legal basis to enforce blocking orders against access providers, leaving the regulator able to act only against the operators of illegal sites themselves.
Who is now required to comply
Unlike before, blocking orders no longer target only the operators; they can now also be directed at access providers and domain registrars. Providers can no longer claim technical neutrality to avoid compliance, and must load the GGL's regularly updated blocklist onto their own DNS servers.
The aim is to break a pattern regulators have wrestled with for years: blocked operators routinely resurfaced under a new domain within days, while enforcement against the operator itself, often based abroad, went nowhere.
How big the problem really is, according to the GGL
A GGL study published in March 2026 puts the black-market share of German online gambling at 22.97 percent. Estimated gross gaming revenue for unlicensed operators reached roughly 547 million euros in 2024 — money moved without a deposit limit, without an OASIS link, and without contributing to German gambling tax.
Whether DNS blocking meaningfully reduces that share remains to be seen: technically capable users can bypass it with alternative DNS servers or VPN services. The GGL is therefore also relying on player education and on blocking payments to the payment processors involved.
What this means for choosing an operator
The basic advice hasn't changed: a legal operator can be identified by the GGL licence number stated on its site and the mandatory responsible-gambling notice linking to help services such as the BIÖG hotline. A blocked domain is an after-the-fact warning sign, not a substitute for checking beforehand.
Einordnung der Redaktion
DNS blocking mainly catches casual users who stumble onto an illegal site by accident — anyone looking deliberately can still find a way around it, so the only real protection is an account with a GGL-licensed operator.
Sources
- NR-Kurier: <a href="https://www.nr-kurier.de/artikel/163449-neuer-gluecksspielstaatsvertrag-ab-2026--provider-muessen-illegale-gluecksspielseiten-blockieren">New gambling treaty from 2026: providers must block illegal gambling sites</a> (German)