Gambling Games in France
Online slots and casino table games are not licensed in France, so slot machines can legally be played only in land-based casinos. Among players from France, the most played slots in free demo mode are titles from Pragmatic Play, IGT, Amatic, TaDa Gaming, EGT and WMS: Temple of Fire - IGT, Wolf Moon - Amatic, Cleopatra - IGT, Zeus II - WMS, Amazons' Battle - EGT and Gates of Olympus - Pragmatic Play. Cleopatra by IGT is a five-reel Egyptian-themed slot and one of the classic titles found on casino floors; its free spins round pays all wins tripled. Its sequel Cleopatra Plus adds a bonus wheel. Temple of Fire and Solar Disc by IGT continue the same theme of ancient temples and treasures. Wolf Moon by Amatic is a five-reel slot with a night-time wolf theme and a free spins bonus. Zeus II by WMS follows the Greek mythology theme of the original Zeus slot and features free spins with stacked symbols. Amazons' Battle by EGT is a five-reel slot about warrior women with free spins and a gamble feature. Gates of Olympus by Pragmatic Play is a six-reel slot where wins are paid anywhere on the screen; winning symbols tumble away and random multipliers can raise the win up to 5,000 times the bet.
Gambling Legislation
There are a number of games that can be played legally in France, including: Boules, Twenty-three, Roulette games, Thirty-forty, Blackjack, Craps, Punto banco, War game, The Wheel of Fortune, Rampo, Sic bo and Bingo. Club games are considered separately: Three types of Baccarat, Écarté, Poker, Bridge, French Tarot and Rummy. As far as slot machines are concerned, their import and production are prohibited by the Internal Security Code. Nevertheless there are some exceptions. Casinos may offer slot machines to visitors if at least one casino game is offered. This same law also states that the RTP (return to player) of the slots must be at least 85%. There is also a limit imposed on the amount of credits featured in a slot machine. Lotteries are normally banned, but again there are some exceptions. These are the types that are allowed:
- Charity lotteries for funding art or not-for-profit sporting events
- Bingo
- Lotteries during exhibitions, TV and radio shows
- National lottery
- Promo lotteries
France interprets gambling and betting as contracts related to chance. This is the category that insurance belongs to as well. The difference between gambling and other similar contracts is that it is a calculation of the opportunity, while others would rather pay for service. Changes in French legislation, which were adopted not so long ago, led to the monitoring of skill games. The Internal Security Code regulates most of the gambling industry in France. The rest is controlled by individual laws. The Online Gaming Law of 12 May 2010 regulates sports betting, bets on horse racing and club games (poker only). The Internal Security Code authorises and regulates casinos on sea waters, on cruise ships under the nation's flag and in the resorts and cities that are popular with tourists. Casinos and gaming clubs feature the games authorised by the Ministry of Home Affairs. On the whole, casinos are monitored quite strictly. Aside from games, they also must provide entertainment and catering services. The number of games in the casinos is limited: the establishments only feature games that they have a license for. Pursuant to Article 136, Finance Law 1933, the monopoly on lottery belongs to La Française des Jeux. FDJ was privatised in November 2019, but it kept the exclusive right to run lotteries and sports betting in retail outlets, now under ANJ supervision. Pursuant to Decree 97-456 of 5 May 1997, horse racing was put under the monopoly of Pari Mutuel Urbain. The PMU still holds the exclusive right to off-course horse race betting in retail outlets, while online horse betting is open to approved operators. Minors are not allowed to gamble. The exception is charity lotteries, lotteries during exhibitions and bingo games.
Regulators
The land-based gambling industry is monitored by the Ministry of Home Affairs. The prefects and national commissions or federations may also deal with the games, depending on the level of the operators. All land-based licenses are only issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs. Autorité de Régulation des Jeux en Ligne (ARJEL), which was set up back in 2010 when French online market was opened up, dealt with online gambling business until 2020. It was then replaced by the Autorité nationale des jeux (ANJ), which regulates online gambling, supervises FDJ and PMU, and also controls anti-money laundering and responsible gambling measures in casinos and gaming clubs. Pascal Chèvremont was appointed president of the ANJ in June 2026, succeeding Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, who had led the authority since its creation. The ANJ also blocks illegal gambling websites; in July 2026, for example, it obtained the blocking of the prediction market Polymarket in France.
Online gambling
As far as online gambling in France goes, it has been legalised. The ANJ issues licenses to operators even though poker is the only game that is allowed among the club games. Online casino games such as slots, roulette and blackjack remain illegal. Sports betting and betting on horse races are legal as well. An online operator can provide services only in France, which means that gaming websites will target residents of France exclusively. Software must be approved by the ANJ. The license will list all suppliers of the online platform. Online licenses are issued for three types of gambling games: poker, sports bets and horse racing. A separate permit is issued for each type. The operator, however, can run several gaming platforms that provide licensed games. The operator must be based in the European Union or the European economic zone. Operators pay fees for the application and for each approval, as well as taxes on stakes or gross gaming revenue. The license for online gaming business is issued for five years with a possibility of extension. The ANJ list of approved operators includes such brands as Winamax, Betclic, Unibet, PMU, PokerStars, ZEturf, Genybet, bwin, NetBet, Betsson, bet365 and Vbet. The up-to-date list is published on the ANJ website.
Gambling Licensing
Permits for casinos are issued for individual platforms. A company or a person can run several facilities. Traditionally, a gaming club must be run by a non-profit organisation. In Paris, where the old non-profit gaming circles had all closed by 2018, commercial "clubs de jeux" have operated since 1 January 2018 under an experimental regime, which was extended until 31 December 2027. The games are also offered along with social, cultural and charity events. Creation of a non-profit organisation with such goals must be accompanied by a notification for the prefecture. Once the inspection has been conducted by the prefecture on whether the application complies with the legislation, the notification gets published in Official Journal. Once that is done, the organisation can provide gambling games. All employees of casinos and clubs must possess a license no matter what kind of work they perform. Most of the establishments require an approval from the Ministry of Home Affairs. The license is issued for the period of 20 years. For the clubs the permit is issued for one year with a possibility of extension.
Procedure for casinos
A casino must sign an agreement with the city where it operates. The Ministry of Home Affairs will meet the request and grant the right to provide public services. Sometimes granting the rights takes the form of tenders.Then the operator must obtain the common license to provide all services on one platform. All types of games and services are described in the permit. In addition to this, licenses are required from suppliers and employees. If the government does not respond to the application within 4 months, it is considered as a refusal.
Procedure for gambling clubs
Two copies of the permit are issued to the manager of the club. The permit is filled out together with the local prefect. The prefect hands one copy to the Ministry of Home Affairs. The Ministry endorses the application once the response is received from Commission Consultative des Jeux de Cercle et de Casino. This is what the club manager lists in the application: compliance with the rules of submitting the application, defining the percentage of GGR (gross gaming revenue), which will go towards support of services and entertainment, charity events and other undertakings conducted by the club and independence from any restaurants, hotels, bars and other similar facilities that are located in the same area. For example, the establishment will have a separate entrance. The permit will apply only to the specific gaming platform. It cannot be transferred or used by any other facilities. Renaming also falls under this category as well as moving to a different location or changing the staff. If such changes ever occur, the law will consider it as a creation of a new club that will require a new permit to be issued.
Licensed varieties of gambling
The list of legal gambling games in France contains the following items: poker, sports betting, horse racing and dog racing and casino games. Poker consists of six different types, from Hold'em and Omaha to three card poker An order dated 14 May 2007 on the regulation applicable to games in casinos, is what regulates the rules of the game and conducting of tournaments.
Development of gambling Market in France
The gambling industry in France has been developing quite successfully. Even though no French developers of gaming machines or casino games are known, casinos and gaming platforms are still developed quite well. Interestingly enough, the facilities must provide other services, including charitable events, along with the games. The online market keeps growing as well: the number of active player accounts reached about 6.1 million in 2025, and the former state lottery operator, privatised in 2019, has since grown into the international group FDJ United. Online casino games, however, are still not legal in France.
