The Regulation of Sports Betting in France
The French market for sports betting is governed by a robust and sophisticated legal framework, designed to enable regulated competition, protect consumers—particularly minors—and safeguard the integrity of sport.
A key illustration of this framework lies in the regulation of online football betting, which remains a major focus for operators, clubs, and legal advisors alike.
The National Gambling Authority (Autorité nationale des jeux, ‘ANJ’) oversees the market; granting licences (agréments); ensuring integrity and transparency; preventing fraudulent or criminal activities, including money laundering and the financing of terrorism; monitoring compliance; and enforcing sanctions.
The overarching objectives, enshrined in Article L. 320-3 of the Internal Security Code (Code de la sécurité intérieure – ‘CSI’), include limiting the scope and harmful effects of gambling, protecting minors, ensuring integrity, and preserving the balance of regulated gaming sectors.
Whilst many forms of online gambling—such as online casino games—remain prohibited in France, online sports betting, including football, is authorised subject to licensing. For football, in particular, operators must hold a specific licence from the ANJ and ensure that the bets that they offer correspond exclusively to authorised types. Prohibited models, such as betting exchanges or spread betting, are excluded from the French regime.
Moreover, operators may only offer bets on events and competitions authorised under French sports regulations; for example, in accordance with the French Sports Code /Code du sport or in cooperation with sports organisers. They must also respect any exclusive or event-rights restrictions applicable in France.
The licensing system for online sports betting is rigorous. Applicants must demonstrate technical, financial, and organisational reliability—including secure information systems; anti-money-laundering controls; robust age verification; and responsible-gambling mechanisms. Licences are granted for a limited duration, and renewal is conditional upon continued compliance.
Ensuring the integrity of sport and preventing manipulation in football betting are core pillars of the French regulatory regime. As football remains one of the most betting-intensive sports, regulatory scrutiny is particularly strong to counter risks of match-fixing and other forms of manipulation. Licensed operators are bound to detect and report any irregular betting patterns and to cooperate fully with the ANJ and sports organisations.
In parallel, sports bodies must uphold transparency in their commercial partnerships and adopt active integrity policies to mitigate betting-related risks.
The ANJ represents France in the European standardisation process for online gambling monitoring, an initiative requested by the European Commission. Within this framework, the ANJ chairs the CEN Technical Committee 456, tasked with developing a voluntary European standard for data reporting and regulatory oversight of online gambling. This standard aims to harmonise information exchange between regulators and strengthen integrity-monitoring across the single European Union market.
At the international level, the ANJ was amongst the founding members of the Copenhagen Group, created in July 2016 under the auspices of the Council of Europe. This network brings together the national platforms against the manipulation of sports competitions as provided in Article 13 of the Macolin Convention. Its mission is to enhance cooperation, information-sharing and coordinated responses to match-fixing at both European and global levels.
The ANJ also plays an active role within two key European coordination bodies: the Gaming Regulators’ European Forum (GREF), which unites 41 regulators from 34 States to exchange expertise and best practices; and the Regulators’ Group, which brings together the French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, British, German and Austrian authorities to address cross-border regulatory issues and share operational experience.
Through this multi-level engagement, France, via the ANJ, contributes decisively to the protection of sporting integrity.
These efforts are particularly relevant in football, where economic stakes, media exposure and betting volumes combine to create heightened risks of manipulation. Effective integrity protection thus depends not only upon domestic supervision but also upon sustained, structured collaboration across borders. This legal framework continues to evolve. By Decision No. 2023-237 of 21 December 2023, effective 1 March 2024, the ANJ revised the national “sports list”—the catalogue of authorised competitions and betting markets—to strengthen oversight, ensure coherence, and reduce manipulation risks.
This reform illustrates the Regulator’s ongoing commitment to maintaining a responsible, transparent, and integrity-driven sports betting environment in France.
We advise on all aspects of sports betting in France, including football, and further information is available from the Head of our French Law Practice, Dr Estelle Ivanova, by emailing her at ivanova@valloni.ch.