In Sweden, there are only four legal casinos, all belonging to state-owned companies. The laws regulating gambling-related activities in Sweden are pretty severe, but the gambling market is legal, safe, and reliable.
History of Gambling in Sweden
Gambling in Sweden has a long history. The oldest finds of gambling-related objects date back to the third century A.D. Card games appeared in Sweden in the 1400s. The first casino opened its doors in the eighteenth century. It was called Ramlosa Brunn. It offered the following games: roulette, faro, and basset, which were extremely popular in Sweden.
Yet, in the middle of the 19th century, casinos were officially banned.
The Swedish Church played a significant role in this prohibition. The clergy called gambling "diabolical" and prohibited its parishioners from gambling.
The state lottery, Penninglotteriet, has been operating since 1897. Other forms of gambling, including horse racing, bingo, and gaming halls, were legalized in the 1950s-1960s.
Opening land-based casinos in Sweden started being lobbied in 1970, although gambling was allowed at restaurants on a small scale. As a result, in the spring of 1999, the Parliament decided that the state had to create casinos with international regulations across the country.
Approximately 50 forms of legal gambling are currently available in Sweden.
They are used at typical casinos (for example, poker and blackjack). Despite this, the state-owned company Cosmopol regulates only four legal casinos.
Swedish Casinos
Here is a brief review of land-based casinos that operate in Sweden now.
Casino Cosmopol Sundsvall
The first gambling club, Casino Cosmopol Sundsvall, opened in Sundsvall on June 30, 2001. It is located in the old railway station building, built in 1874. The property was significantly expanded and upgraded to provide gambling activities.
The casino offers 15 gaming tables and 140 pokie machines.
Casino Cosmopol Malmo
It was opened in December 2001 in King's Park. The casino presents 26 gaming tables and 260 pokies.
Casino Cosmopol Goteborg
In August 2002, Casino Cosmopol Goteborg was opened in an old customs house on the river Gota. The casino offers visitors numerous games, including:
- eleven roulette tables,
- seven blackjack tables,
- three Caribbean Stud Poker tables,
- progressive punto banco,
- three poker tables,
- and 343 pokie machines.
The complex has a restaurant and two bars. The new building, the Poker Room, was attached to the casino house. It features 17 poker tables for Texas Hold 'em, Omaha, and 7-Card Stud. There is also an entertainment center with a bar.
It is interesting to note that the casino has closed only once since its opening. It happened on the day of the flood in Gothenburg in mid-December 2006.
Casino Cosmopol Stockholm
The recently opened Swedish casino Casino Cosmopol Stockholm ends our list. It is located in King Bridge in a building that used to be a nightclub and restaurant. Casino Cosmopol Stockholm has occupied it since March 2003.
It offers 36 gaming tables and 399 pokie machines to its visitors.
Swedish Gambling Legislation
Gambling is legal in Sweden. The state-owned Svenska Spel company controls it. The state owns all rights to the opening and regulation of the gambling business.
Private companies in Sweden may not provide gambling-related services.
Svenska Spel regulates the lottery, poker, bingo, and land-based casino markets. The last one is owned by its subsidiary enterprise, Casino Cosmopol AB. In 1999, the Government of Sweden granted this company license to build six casinos. Yet, Cosmopol's preliminary investigation showed that four currently existing gambling clubs are enough to meet customers' demands and provide all the necessary services.
Three casinos are undoubtedly situated in the largest cities of Sweden:
- Stockholm,
- Gothenburg,
- and Malmo.
The fourth location was determined after severe competition among Swedish towns. The winner was Sundsvall. This choice is mainly explained by its convenient location. The decision to open a casino and its implementation were separated by a short period.
- The first casino was opened in Sundsvall on June 30, 2001.
- In December of the same year, the casino in Malmo was opened.
- The third casino started its operations in August 2002 in Gothenburg.
- The first customers attended the casino in Stockholm in 2003.
In 2015, the turnover of the gambling market in Sweden reached 4.9 billion euros, an insignificant increase compared to 2014, when the turnover was 4.8 billion euros. A positive trend in the gambling market was also observed in the first quarter of 2016, when the turnover increased by 6 percent compared to the same period last year.
Where, What, and How to Play at Swedish Casinos?
Sweden has only four casinos, located in Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmo, and Sundsvall. These casinos are open daily from noon until dawn. They offer numerous table games, including:
- roulette,
- blackjack,
- poker,
- baccarat,
- punto banco,
- Texas Hold 'em,
- and various pokie machines.
Swedish casinos also have poker tournaments.
Online Gambling
Online gambling in Sweden is a viral phenomenon since Sweden is a country that develops Internet technologies and communications. Suppose you want to use Swedish gaming sites. In that case, you must register personally, i.e., enter your personal information, including your phone or social security number.
Every gambler must have a Swedish bank account and registered address. In addition, players must set their betting limits per week.
Taking into account that online casinos operating outside the territory of Sweden are neither legal nor prohibited, Swedish gamblers can legally play on these sites by EU legislation. Thus, many European online casinos focus on gamblers from Sweden. The Swedes created and managed many online casinos (for instance, Expekt.com, Unibet.com, Betsson.com, Casinoeuro.com, etc.).
Net Entertainment, one of the three largest online casino software manufacturers, was founded in Sweden. It is a recognized leader and pioneer in the global gambling industry. Various independent associations issued several dozen certificates certifying its integrity. The company releases exciting pokie machines with detailed animations and enormous jackpots.
One of its pokies was even mentioned in the Guinness World Records: the Mega Fortune pokie allowed winning the largest jackpot in the history of the Internet. Its size exceeded 17 million euros.
Interesting Facts
Here are some fascinating stories from the Swedish gambling industry.
The Biggest Winning at Stockholm Casinos
In May 2012, the most significant victory in the history of Swedish land-based casinos occurred. It happened at the Cosmopol Casino in Stockholm.
One Swedish family whose members often visit Swedish casinos was fortunate. The couple usually preferred pokie machines, and they played together. However, this time the wife was luckier. She continued to play, whereas the husband went away to pay for parking.
The woman hit the jackpot, winning 33,789,320 SEK (over 3.7 million euros).
The couple decided to remain anonymous and could not say what to do with this amount.
The previous biggest jackpot was also hit at Cosmopol Casino while playing the Fortune eMillions pokie game. It reached 1.68 million euros.
The Biggest Winning at Online Casinos
Swedes obtain many huge winnings at online casinos.
One of the biggest payouts, 4,100,000 euros, was won at Unibet Casino by a 26-year-old player from Stockholm, who deposited only 50 euros.
Can you imagine that he managed to hit the multi-million jackpot after a few minutes of playing pokie machines? Unibet Casino also had the biggest payout, exceeding 7.6 million euros.
What Is a Typical Swedish Gambler?
In general, the Swedes are gamblers and family men. They prefer playing online to visiting land-based casinos. And they often win: online casinos recorded hundreds of wins ranging from tens to hundreds of thousands of euros.