Turkish authorities are intensifying their fight against illegal gambling platforms. Turkey’s Minister of Treasury and Finance, Mehmet Şimşek, stated:  “Turkey is in a great battle against illegal betting and gambling sites.”

According to the National Lottery Administration (MPİ), 233,000 websites were blocked in 2023-2024. Of these, 56% were registered in the United States, 17% in Armenia, and 6% in the Netherlands.

MPİ has forwarded the gathered information to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Cybercrime Department for further investigation. Legal actions are underway against 376,000 websites and over 6,700 unique domains.

Şimşek emphasized that illegal gambling platforms pose a serious threat to the country’s economy by undermining tax revenues from state operators such as Milli Piyango (National Lottery) and IDDAA (sports betting).

He noted: “We are determined to prevent unregistered economic activities and financial crimes that harm our citizens. Our fight against illegal betting, virtual gambling, and unauthorised draws will continue.”

To combat these threats, the Ministry of Treasury and Finance plans to increase oversight of social media platforms promoting illegal gambling. Among the new initiatives is a revision of Turkey’s criminal code, which would introduce stricter fines and increase prison sentences to 3–6 years.

Additionally, MPİ will launch a nationwide awareness campaign covering all 81 provinces of Turkey, educating citizens about the risks associated with illegal gambling websites.

Gambling not approved by the government has been banned in Turkey since 2006. However, enforcing this law remains challenging due to the lack of a clear legal framework for classifying gambling activities.

The situation is further complicated by the division of industry oversight among three different organizations: the National Lottery Administration, the Turkish Spor Toto Organization, and the Turkish Jockey Club. This fragmented approach has led international operators to label Turkey as a “grey market.”

In 2019, a joint venture between Sisal (Flutter Entertainment) and Turkish media conglomerate Demirören Holdings (SANs AS) won the government tender to manage the Milli Piyango contract.

Since 2014, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), led by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has maintained a monopoly on gambling and has no plans to amend current legislation.

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