Regulatory
ANJ
Definition
Autorité Nationale des Jeux. The French national gambling regulator established in 2020, replacing ARJEL with expanded scope across online betting, poker, and land-based products.
Key takeaways
- The ANJ is France's national gambling regulator, created by an ordinance of 2 October 2019 and in place since June 2020, succeeding the online-only ARJEL.
- Licensed private operators may offer sports betting, horse race betting and poker online; online casino remains prohibited in France.
- The ANJ also oversees the FDJ and PMU monopolies and casinos' responsible-gambling policies; other casino regulation sits with the Interior Ministry.
Why it matters
France has a partially open licensed online market, with sports betting, horse racing, and poker available to licensed private operators while online casino remains prohibited at the national level. ANJ regulates the licensed segment and oversees the wider gambling ecosystem, including the FDJ lottery and PMU retail betting monopolies and the responsible-gambling policies of land-based casinos, whose other regulation remains with the Interior Ministry. Its scope is wider than the predecessor ARJEL, which was online-only.
For operators, France is a meaningful Tier 1 market but one with structural limits. The absence of online casino is a persistent commercial constraint and a recurring topic of industry advocacy. Sports betting and poker licence processes are well established but tax and contribution structures are heavy by European standards. ANJ has been active on responsible gambling enforcement and advertising restrictions, including limits on bonus offers and creative content.
Sources
- Autorité nationale des jeux: un régulateur au service d'un jeu sûr, intègre et maîtrisé (2025) - Autorité nationale des jeux
Frequently asked questions
Why is there no licensed online casino in France?
Historical policy choice tied to protecting the state lottery and the land-based casino sector. There has been intermittent debate about opening online casino, but no legislative progress at the time of writing. Operators serving French players with online casino content are doing so from offshore licences outside the regulated framework.
How does ANJ differ from ARJEL?
ARJEL was a single-vertical regulator for online gambling. ANJ has a broader mandate covering online and land-based gambling, including supervision of the FDJ and PMU monopolies and of land-based casinos' policies against excessive gambling, while other casino regulation stays with the Ministry of the Interior. The change in 2020 was both organisational and a signal of policy direction toward integrated oversight.