- Meet the GGL, Germany's Gambling Regulator
- What the GGL controls, and what it does not
- The Rulebook: The 2021 State Treaty on Gambling
- What the Rules Mean on a Bundesliga Matchday
- Live betting is tightly limited
- Some markets are banned completely
- Your spending is capped across every app
- Every stake is taxed
- Football Sponsorship and Advertising
- The Fight Against Illegal Betting
- A legal setback over website blocking
- What Happens Next
A €1,000 monthly deposit cap, no live bets on corners or cards, and a 5.3% tax on every stake. Germany runs one of the strictest legal betting markets in Europe. Here is who enforces the rules, how they work and why they matter every Bundesliga weekend.
Germans now bet more on sport than ever. Stakes on sports betting reached €4.65 billion in the first half of 2026, up from €4.06 billion a year earlier, according to figures from the GGL market monitor. About three quarters of that money was staked online rather than in betting shops.
For most of the past two decades, though, online betting in Germany sat in a legal grey area. Operators used licences from places such as Malta, while German courts and the 16 federal states argued over who could allow what. That changed in 2021, when a new national framework took effect and a single regulator was created to run it.
This guide explains who that regulator is, the rules it enforces for sports betting, how it tackles illegal sites and where the system is heading, with a focus on what all of this means for football fans.
Meet the GGL, Germany’s Gambling Regulator
Germany’s gambling regulator is the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder, usually shortened to GGL. In English, the name means the Joint Gambling Authority of the Federal States. It is a public-law institution based in Halle (Saale), in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, and it is run jointly by all 16 German states.
That joint structure matters. In Germany, gambling is a matter for the states, not the federal government. Instead of 16 different online rulebooks, the states agreed one treaty and one authority to supervise the internet market. The GGL took over its first tasks on 1 July 2022 and gained full responsibility on 1 January 2023.
The authority marked its fifth anniversary in Halle in September 2026. It now has about 100 staff, who supervise what the GGL describes as a largely established legal online market while also working against illegal gambling.
What the GGL controls, and what it does not
The GGL licenses and supervises online sports betting, virtual slot machines and online poker across Germany. It decides which companies can operate, monitors whether they follow the law and acts against unlicensed offers. Some areas stay with individual states, including state lotteries, land-based casinos, arcades and the OASIS player blocking system, which is run by the state of Hesse.
The Rulebook: The 2021 State Treaty on Gambling
The GGL enforces the Glücksspielstaatsvertrag 2021 (GlüStV 2021), the State Treaty on Gambling, which came into force on 1 July 2021. For the first time, it created a clear licensing path for online sports betting, virtual slots and online poker, in exchange for some of the strictest player protection rules in Europe.
According to the GGL’s 2025 activity report, 29 companies held sports betting licences in 2025, and 27 of them were active. Every licensed operator appears on the GGL’s public whitelist, which is the quickest way for a player to check whether a betting site is legal in Germany.
The key rules for sports bettors are summarised below.
| Rule | What it means for football bettors in Germany |
| Licence | Only operators on the GGL whitelist may offer bets to people in Germany |
| Deposit limit | €1,000 per month across all licensed operators combined, checked through the central LUGAS system (higher limits possible only under strict conditions) |
| Self-exclusion | Every licensed operator must check the national OASIS blocking system |
| In-play betting | Only the final result and the next goal (or next set in sports like volleyball) |
| Banned markets | Bets on rule violations or sanctions, on youth matches (except major events) and on amateur matches |
| Betting tax | 5.3% on every stake, set by federal law |
| Advertising | No betting ads for a match on the channel showing it, just before or during the live broadcast; no active players or officials in betting ads |
What the Rules Mean on a Bundesliga Matchday
Live betting is tightly limited
This is the biggest difference for football fans who are used to betting apps in other countries. Under the treaty, once a match has started, licensed operators can only offer bets on the final result and on the next goal. In-play markets on corners, cards, throw-ins or the next team to win a free kick are not allowed.
The treaty allows “next goal” style bets only in sports with relatively few scoring events, naming football, hockey, ice hockey and volleyball as examples. The aim is to slow down live betting, which regulators see as one of the riskiest forms of gambling.
Some markets are banned completely
Even before kick-off, certain bets are off limits. The treaty bans bets on rule violations or on sanctions for them, which rules out betting on bookings. It also bans bets on events involving mainly amateurs or minors, unless they are major national or international events, and any bet that is especially open to manipulation. Every type of bet must be approved by the regulator in advance.
Your spending is capped across every app
Players in Germany can deposit a maximum of €1,000 per month in total with licensed online operators. This is not a per-site limit. A central system called LUGAS links the operators, so opening accounts with three bookmakers does not give you €3,000. Higher limits are possible only in exceptional cases and under strict conditions.
Licensed operators must also check OASIS, the national player blocking system. Players can block themselves, and the register also covers people blocked through other routes. In March 2025, OASIS held 318,104 active bans, according to figures from the Darmstadt regional authority reported by Casino.org.
Every stake is taxed
Germany taxes sports betting at 5.3% of the stake, under a federal law rather than the state treaty. Unlike many countries that tax operator profits, this means tax is due on every bet placed. Operators often pass this cost on through lower odds or deductions from winnings, which is why prices can look worse than on unlicensed sites.
Football Sponsorship and Advertising
Betting brands remain highly visible in German football. FC Bayern Munich work with Tipico and Borussia Dortmund with bwin, and betting partners appear on pitchside boards and social media across the Bundesliga. VfB Stuttgart wore Winamax on the front of their shirt from 2023 to 2025.
Advertising is legal for licensed operators, but within limits. A bookmaker cannot advertise bets on a specific match on the channel broadcasting it, immediately before or during the live coverage. Active athletes and officials cannot appear in sports betting adverts. Live scores shown during a match cannot be combined with betting adverts for that game, except on the bookmaker’s own site.
To protect the integrity of matches, betting operators must be completely separate from clubs and competition organisers. Players, coaches and others who can influence a result are banned from betting on it or promoting bets on it. Licensed bookmakers must also join an independent early-warning system and report suspicious betting patterns.
The Fight Against Illegal Betting
Strict rules only work if players stay with licensed sites. A study commissioned by the GGL estimated that illegal providers took about 23% of the online market volume in 2024, giving a “channelisation rate” of 77%. The same study put gross gaming revenue in the examined online black market at around €547 million that year.
The scale of illegal activity can be large. In September 2026, the GGL welcomed an investigation by prosecutors in Frankfurt am Main into illegal gambling offers that, based on current reports, processed stakes of around €5.86 billion between July 2021 and the end of 2023. The case led to an arrest.
A legal setback over website blocking
The regulator’s tools have limits. On 19 March 2025, Germany’s Federal Administrative Court ruled that a GGL order forcing an internet access provider to block Malta-based gambling sites was unlawful, because the treaty did not cover such providers. The GGL has since shifted its focus to hosting providers and has asked for the law to be reviewed.
The authority also works across borders. Regulators from Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein met in Bern in September 2026 to coordinate action against illegal online offers. In August 2026, the GGL stated that “social betting” products cannot be licensed in Germany, meaning taking part from Germany is not allowed.
What Happens Next
The 2021 treaty is now under review. The state gambling authorities, with the GGL involved, must deliver an evaluation report by 31 December 2026. The report will not change any rules itself, but it will guide lawmakers on possible reforms. Industry voices have suggested more flexible deposit limits or a tax on operator revenue instead of stakes, while the GGL has stressed the protective purpose of the current rules.
Separately, the states signed a second amending treaty in March 2026. It focuses on technical points, such as clearer duties for checking the player blocking system and better data for regulators on international operators. It does not change the €1,000 limit or the 5.3% tax.
For football fans in Germany, the practical message is clear. Check the GGL whitelist before signing up, expect fewer live markets than abroad and treat offers that ignore the deposit limit or OASIS as a warning sign. An unlicensed site may look more generous, but it gives up every protection the GGL was built to enforce.
