Holland Casino posted a pre-tax profit of €33.0 million in 2025, reversing a loss of €1.3 million the year before, according to the operator’s annual report. The turnaround was driven primarily by cost restructuring and one-off proceeds from property disposals, not revenue growth.
What Drove the Profit
The €33.0 million result reflects cost measures taken across the organisation, including a restructuring of the head office, and exceptional income from the sale of land and premises in Zandvoort and Groningen. Management was explicit that the improvement does not represent a structural shift in the company’s financial position.
A significant portion of the higher result is the consequence of cost measures that cannot be repeated every year. That is positive, but it is not a structural solution. We will need to continue investing in efficiency and digitalisation measures, the first effects of which are visible in the figures. Further choices and measures remain necessary, given the further increase in gambling tax and autonomous wage cost increases.
That is the assessment of CFO Ruud Bergervoet, who made clear the 2025 outcome does not reduce pressure on the business going into 2026.
Land-Based Recovery, Online Stabilisation
The land-based operation performed better in 2025 than in 2024. Visits rose to 5.3 million and average spend per visit increased to €140. Online revenue stabilised following the introduction of sector-wide stake limits, which constrained growth but also reduced volatility in player spending patterns.
Holland Casino paid €251.8 million in gambling tax during 2025, up €28.9 million on the prior year. That figure will increase again from 1 January 2026, when the Dutch gambling tax rate rises to 37.8%. The Dutch market’s channelisation rate has already fallen below 50%, a trend that complicates the regulatory environment Holland Casino operates in as the country’s sole licensed land-based casino operator.
CEO: Result Masks Ongoing Structural Challenges
Thanks to the great commitment and focus of our employees, we closed 2025 better than expected. That shows the organisation is resilient. At the same time, we need to contextualise this outcome properly: it says too little about the structural financial position of Holland Casino. We will need to continue investing in digitalisation, new game concepts and the execution of the preventive care mandate.
CEO Petra de Ruiter acknowledged the operational improvement while framing it against continuing obligations — investment in digital infrastructure, product development, and the responsible gambling remit the state-owned operator carries as a condition of its monopoly status.
Responsible Gambling Investment Continues
Holland Casino expanded its responsible gambling infrastructure in 2025. The operator introduced MijnHC, a personal account system that gives players visibility into their own gambling behaviour, which registered 36,000 accounts in its first year. Online risk detection was also refined and quality controls on prevention conversations were tightened.
The responsible gambling framework is a regulatory obligation for Holland Casino, which operates under a licence granted by the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA). The KSA recently warned against the normalisation of gambling as social attitudes in the Netherlands continue to shift, a context that keeps player protection obligations central to Holland Casino’s reporting.
Tax Pressure Defines the 2026 Outlook
The 2025 result lands as Holland Casino faces its most significant cost headwind in years. The gambling tax increase to 37.8% from 1 January 2026 adds direct pressure on margins. Wage costs are also rising autonomously, a factor Bergervoet highlighted as compounding the structural challenge.
The operator has not indicated any changes to its estate or market position. With the one-off property proceeds from Zandvoort and Groningen now absorbed, and no comparable asset disposals anticipated, sustaining profitability in 2026 will require the efficiency and digitalisation gains to carry more of the load. Management’s language in the annual report — “further choices and measures remain necessary” — signals that cost discipline will remain the primary lever.
For context on how tax increases are reshaping operator economics across Europe, see the Financial Reports section for comparable market coverage.
Source: Holland Casino
