KEY TAKEAWAYS
Veikkaus, Finland’s state-owned gambling company, announced on October 29, 2026 that it has signed a commercial agreement with Viaplay Denmark and Viaplay Finland to launch a new gaming brand called Viabet. Veikkaus will build, own and run the brand itself, and it is due to start in both Finland and Denmark on July 1, 2027, according to the company’s press release. The move is Veikkaus’s first step into consumer gambling outside its home market. Financial terms and the length of the contract were not part of the announcement.
What Veikkaus and Viaplay Agreed
The agreement pairs a gambling operator with a sports media company. Veikkaus handles development, ownership and day-to-day operation of Viabet, as described in its announcement, while the two Viaplay units act as commercial partners.
Under the deal, Veikkaus will blend agreed portions of Viaplay’s selected media content with its own work in gaming, technology, customer experience and responsible play. Viaplay in turn receives sports data and analytics from Veikkaus, which the company says will add insight to Viaplay’s sports coverage for viewers.
Both sides framed the arrangement around sports content. Veikkaus said sports content plays a central role in the appeal and competitiveness of a betting product, and it credited Viaplay with sports content expertise and market knowledge in Finland and Denmark. The two companies already cooperate in Finland: Viaplay Finland chief executive Mikael Svensson said the firms have an existing partnership in Finnish sports production, which the new agreement expands.
Viaplay Denmark chief executive Lars Bo Jeppesen said Veikkaus has ambitions and the expertise to succeed in the Danish market, adding that he sees “responsibility at the heart of its plans.” Veikkaus chief executive Olli Sarekoski described the agreement as a strategic step in the company’s international growth and said it will help Veikkaus compete in an open market.
The Disclosed Terms at a Glance
The table below collects what the announcement states about the arrangement. Items the release does not address are listed in a later section rather than filled in here.
| Item | What was announced |
|---|---|
| Announced | October 29, 2026 |
| Brand | Viabet |
| Owner and operator | Veikkaus |
| Partners | Viaplay Denmark and Viaplay Finland |
| Markets | Finland and Denmark |
| Launch date | July 1, 2027 |
| Viaplay’s contribution | Agreed elements of selected media content |
| Veikkaus’s contribution | Gaming, technology, customer experience and responsible play expertise; sports data and analytics for Viaplay’s coverage |
Two features stand out from the table. Veikkaus keeps ownership of the brand, so Viaplay is a commercial partner rather than a co-owner, based on the release’s wording. The launch date for both countries is the same, July 1, 2027.
How Veikkaus Got Here
Veikkaus has operated abroad before, but not with consumer products. The company started its international activity in 2022 through a business-to-business subsidiary, Fennica Gaming. Fennica currently supplies Finnish gaming expertise, technology and digital gaming solutions to customers in 21 countries, according to the announcement.
Viabet changes that pattern. Veikkaus describes the brand as its first move into the business-to-consumer market outside Finland, and says the step supports its stated long-term goal of becoming a respected international gaming group. The shift from supplier to brand owner means Veikkaus will deal directly with players in a second country, rather than with business customers.
Jonas Reuter, who leads international business at Veikkaus, tied the plan to Finland’s market reform. He said the opening of the Finnish money gaming market creates a growth opportunity and that the company sees demand abroad for its expertise. Viabet is meant to turn that expertise into a consumer business in selected markets, he said.
The company also places the deal within a wider industry trend. In its release, Veikkaus says the global money gaming market is becoming more international and more concentrated, with competition, liberalization and consolidation raising the importance of brands and partnerships in regulated markets.
Why July 2027 Matters in Finland
The Viabet launch date is not arbitrary. According to the Finnish police authority’s gambling pages, gambling in Finland becomes a licensed activity on July 1, 2027, when most provisions of the new Gambling Act take effect and operators holding licences can offer games to Finnish players.
Until the end of June 2027, mainland Finland operates under the Lotteries Act, which gives Veikkaus Oy the exclusive right to organize gambling. After that date, other operators that hold licences can also organize gambling.
Supervision changes at the same time. The National Police Board licenses and supervises gambling until the end of June 2027, and from July 2027 that role passes to the Supervisory Agency. Software suppliers face a later deadline: from July 1, 2028, a gaming software licence will be required for those who supply software for gambling.
For Veikkaus, the timing means Viabet will arrive on the day competitors may also begin operating in Finland. The company’s announcement cites the Finnish market opening as the reason it sees a growth opportunity, which is consistent with a brand launched on the opening date.
What the Announcement Does and Doesn’t Say
The announcement is a statement of intent and a signed commercial agreement, not a finished product. No financial terms were published, including any payment between the companies, and the contract’s duration is not stated in the release.
The release also does not describe which Viaplay content Viabet will use, which sports or events are involved, or what products Viabet will offer. The details of the Danish side are thin: as read for this article, the company’s release does not say whether Veikkaus holds or has applied for a Danish licence, so no licensing status is reported for Denmark.
Nor does the announcement say whether Viabet will cover sports betting, online casino games, or both. Veikkaus mentions sports betting when it explains why content matters, but it does not list the product range. Readers should not assume a product lineup that the company has not confirmed.
The July 2027 date is a planned start, not a guarantee. In Finland, the date follows from the legal timetable of the Gambling Act, while for Denmark the release gives the same date without further explanation.
Where Finnish Licensing Stands
Finland began accepting licence applications on March 1, 2026, although no licence can take effect before July 1, 2027, according to the police authority. The application fee is EUR 29,000 for both the gambling licence and the exclusive licence, and it is charged whether the decision is positive or negative.
Licence terms differ by type. A gambling licence can run for up to five years, while an exclusive licence is always granted for ten years. The police authority’s licensing page gives a target processing time of six to eight months and cautions that applications may take longer.
The regulator has begun confirming approvals. As of October 26, 2026, the National Police Board had received 79 applications and granted 12 licences, with none rejected, according to iGaming Business, which obtained the figures through an information request. That was the first official confirmation of approvals from the regulator itself, the outlet reported, although several companies had announced their own licences earlier.
Later tallies may have changed since that report, so these figures are a snapshot. The sources reviewed for this article do not show a licence decision for Viabet or any Veikkaus entity, and this article does not report one.
What to Watch Next
The next steps are mostly dated by the market calendar. The first public test is July 1, 2027, when Viabet is scheduled to launch and Finland’s licensed market opens. Before then, Veikkaus and Viaplay may release further details on content, products and licensing.
Readers following Nordic and European developments can watch for Danish regulatory information tied to the brand, since the announcement does not address it. Related partnership coverage on this site includes the BetMGM NFL partnership in Canada, another deal that links a betting operator with sports content.
Official updates will appear on Veikkaus’s newsroom and on the National Police Board’s gambling pages, which are the primary sources for the company’s plans and for Finland’s licensing process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
- Veikkaus Group — Veikkaus to launch new Viabet brand in Finland and Denmark through commercial partnership with Viaplay (October 29, 2026)
- Finnish Police (National Police Board) — Gambling
- Finnish Police (National Police Board) — Licences under the Gambling Act
- iGaming Business — Finnish regulator confirms 12 gambling licence approvals (October 26, 2026)
