Research on gambling disorders will get €1 million from Spain.

Research on gambling disorders will get €1 million from Spain.

As legislators work to improve consumer protections and update gaming laws, Spain's Ministry of Consumer Affairs has started a new financing program to assist research into diseases associated to gambling.

The program will accept applications from academic institutions and research centers looking for funding to study the negative effects of gambling; the deadline for submissions is June 22, 2026.

The program's €950,620 budget will support research in several important areas, such as:

Enhancing the identification of gambling disorders
Raising understanding of behavioral triggers and signs of gambling harm risk
Creating evidence-based regulations to provide protections against the financial and psychological effects of gambling
The Directorate General for Gambling Regulation's (DGOJ) electronic platform allows public and private research centers to apply; funded studies must be completed by June 30, 2027.

According to officials, the program's goal is to increase Spain's body of research on the negative effects of gambling, which is especially important given how quickly internet gambling and digitalization are developing.

The financing notification is a component of a larger regulatory agenda that the DGOJ and the Spanish government are pushing to improve regulation of the online gaming industry.

2030 Agenda
Spain's Ministry of Consumer Affairs has been in charge of DGOJ duties and national gambling policy since 2020. The ministry is following a regulatory approach that is increasingly concentrated on consumer rights and digital safety.

A public consultation on changes to Spain's Gambling Regulation Act was held last week by the Ministry and DGOJ, reviving attempts to strengthen advertising regulations, enhance preventative measures, and provide regulators more powerful tools to fight illicit gambling.

Renewed limitations on influencer and celebrity-led gambling promotions are a major part of the review.

In the past, Spain tried to impose stricter advertising regulations under clauses related to the Royal Advertising framework. However, once measures aimed at influencers, athletes, and celebrity endorsements were judged to have gone beyond DGOJ jurisdiction and required wider legislative support, the execution of harsher advertising regulations faced legal and procedural challenges.

On the clock, DGOJ
Through its 2026 reform agenda, the government is currently attempting to reinstate advertising limits.

The consultation is also a part of a larger effort to update Spain's gambling laws, which have been essentially unaltered for over 15 years. Lawmakers contend that regulations must change in tandem with the expansion of online gambling and the shifting habits of digital consumers.

Additionally, Spanish operators are still awaiting additional technical instructions from the DGOJ about more comprehensive safer gaming measures, such as a universal deposit monitoring system for licensed operators and a suggested player protection algorithm.

Although they haven't yet entered live operating environments, such projects were initially anticipated to go through testing in 2025.

Additionally, Consumer Affairs officials have stated that they intend to tighten search engine visibility criteria, which may restrict search results connected to betting to authorized operators.

It is anticipated that the research funding program will bolster the body of evidence supporting upcoming reforms, giving regulators and policymakers the information they need to develop policies intended to lessen the negative effects of gaming and strengthen Spain's consumer protection laws.