Live Casino Studios in Spain

Yes, live online gambling is legal in Spain and regulated by the General Directorate for the Regulation of Gambling (Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego – “DGOJ”). In fact, the current gambling market in modern-day Spain is one of the most sophisticated in Europe, with both retail and online gaming thriving under an advanced and well-regulated framework.

Here is an overview of the current laws and how they relate to live casino studios in particular.

Gambling Laws & Regulations

Online gambling in Spain is regulated by Law 13/2011 of the Spanish Gambling Act. This law establishes the DGOJ as the primary licensing authority for all online gambling activity.

As per the law, only operators licensed by the DGOJ are allowed to offer gambling services to Spanish citizens. To obtain a license, operators have to conform to a strict set of rules and guidelines, including privacy rules, KYC policies, customer protection policies, and more.

As of 2024, Spain has continued to enforce strict advertising and operational regulations to protect players and promote responsible gambling. Notable examples include reforms that have increased restrictions on gambling promotions, including limits on bonus offers and advertising aimed at vulnerable groups. This has resulted in a more controlled environment, where operators must focus on compliance to maintain licences.

According to the law, however, all companies profiting from gambling in Spain have to be licensed and regulated. Besides operators, this also means that software providers have to obtain proper licenses. However, unlike countries such as the US, it is possible and legal to offer live games whose tables are physically located elsewhere.

Licensing Authorities

The Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling is the main authority for licensing and regulating gambling in Spain. The Directorate is responsible for issuing licenses, regulating gambling activity, and enforcing the rules established by the Gambling Act of 2011.

This means that every legal online casino in Spain owns a license from the DGOJ. Moreover, operators regularly go through audits and compliance checks if they wish to keep operating.

Moreover, software providers offering live games in Spain are also licensed by the same authority. Holding a license similarly requires these companies to prove fairness and conform to responsible gaming policies.

Evolution, Ezugi, and Playtech are some of the bigger examples of software providers with DGOJ licenses, but there are others.

Licensing Requirements for Operators and Studios

The key components of Spain’s regulations are designed to promote fairness, protect customers, and only allow reputable operations to run in the country.

Online gambling companies, including both casino operators and software providers, have to meet several compliance requirements before acquiring a DGOJ license. The most important requirements include:

• AML (Anti-Money Laundering) policies – Operators must implement comprehensive protocols to combat shady practices such as money laundering. These protocols often ensure transparency regarding how money is funnelled through the entire operation, from the game providers and casinos to the end-users.
• KYC (Know Your Customer) protocols – Operators also have to adhere to strict rules when it comes to verifying the identity of their customers. This involves ensuring a player’s legal age and identity before allowing them to gamble, as well as keeping that information private.
• Fair gaming practices – Game providers have to certify their products, ensuring fairness and transparency. For example, RNG-based games like slots have to be tested by third-party authorities. Live casino tables and studios are also often subjected to audits that oversee fairness and result transparency.
• Responsible Gambling measures – Licensees must provide tools for players to set deposit limits, self-exclusion programs, and access support for gambling-related issues. Additionally, they must meet certain norms when it comes to informing their users about the risks of gambling.
• Data Protection and Security – Operators must adhere to data protection laws to safeguard player information. Much like many other elements of Spain-based gambling businesses, these safety measures are regularly audited, and failing to uphold them can have serious consequences.
• Monitoring – Transparency is further ensured through the enforcement of certain operator activities, such as regular standardised reports about financial transactions, player behaviour, and more.
• License costs – Like in most legal jurisdictions across the globe, maintaining an ongoing gambling license in Spain involves regular fee payments. Moreover, companies have to account for license renewal costs, a regular gambling tax on gross gambling revenue, VAT, and so on.

Live Casino Studio Locations in Spain

Currently, only Evolution and Playtech are confirmed to have a live casino studio location in Spain.

In February of 2013, Evolution announced the launch of a live casino which would be streamed directly from the Casino Rincon de Pepe in the city of Murcia. However, due to the strict regulations that are still maintained in Spain, only some strongly licensed online casinos are able to take advantage of the products. Specifically, it’s casinos with a DGOJ license.

Evo’s Spain studio primarily streams OTT variants of their games. Namely, these include several roulette, baccarat, and blackjack tables, most of which are exclusive to DGOJ-licensed casino sites.

Playtech also operates a studio in Spain, but we don’t know much more about it. The studio presumably streams most of Playtech’s Spanish-speaking game lineup, but we don’t have any additional details.

However, there are more Spanish-speaking studios out there located outside of Spain. Currently, many providers run locations in Colombia, Costa Rica, and other Latin American countries. These games tend to cater to Spanish-speaking audiences from all over the world.

Conclusion

Thanks to its strong legal framework and favorable conditions, Spain has developed a thriving online gambling market. It’s large with a lot of licensed casinos and well-regulated thanks to the expansive regulatory authority and well-enforced guidelines.

As such, Spanish live casino studios offer top-notch live dealer tables all over the world. Most of these locations focus on Spanish-speaking localized variants of popular games like roulette or baccarat. Notably, Evolution and Playtech run studios in Spain, and they’re some of the biggest brands in the business.

If you’re looking for more information about the best live casinos in Spain, check out this page. It lists the best casinos with DGOJ licenses and localized games. Alternatively, check out this page for more Spanish-speaking live tables and gambling sites.