Nine European regulators coordinate a crackdown on prediction markets ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup

Nine gambling regulators in Europe have agreed to step up cross-border enforcement against unlicensed prediction market platforms as the 2026 FIFA World Cup approaches. For PSPs, acquiring teams, and banks touching this vertical, the message is straightforward: the licensing gap is now being treated as an enforcement problem, not a product quirk.

1. Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland said they will coordinate more closely against prediction markets, which they view in Europe as an unlicensed gambling activity. That is a different framing from the US dispute over whether these products are gambling or financial instruments; in Europe, the regulatory position is much less ambiguous.
2. The authorities said their concern is not just the product itself, but the way it is offered. They pointed to 24/7 accessibility, no mandatory betting limits, no cooling-off periods, and weak age and identity checks on unlicensed platforms. In other words: the usual control stack that licensed gambling operators are expected to have is missing, and regulators are saying that is the point.
3. The nine bodies also warned sports federations, leagues and clubs to verify the legality of any partners involved in prediction markets before entering sponsorship or commercial deals. They said they will intensify information sharing and exchange expertise during and after the World Cup, with a focus on advertising compliance and betting integrity safeguards.
4. Enforcement options on the table include formal warnings, sanctions, service blocking, fines, advertising restrictions, and freezing of accounts. The statement specifically flags operators relying on offshore or decentralised crypto-licences, which should be a familiar risk marker for any payments team deciding whether to touch the flow.
5. Spain has already moved first. The Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego (DGOJ) ordered a temporary block on Polymarket and Kalshi last month, saying both platforms were offering services in Spain without the mandatory administrative licences required under Spanish gambling regulation.

For high-risk payment providers, the practical takeaway is that prediction markets are becoming a cross-border compliance issue in Europe, with licensing, advertising, and account access all now under the same regulatory lens.