Italian players have many options when it comes to gambling on the Internet. We’ve provided an overview of the country’s online gambling laws and explain where Italian players can play for real money at some of the world’s best online casinos.
Top online casino websites for players in Italy
Online gambling laws in Italy
In 2006, Italy started the long process of regulating its gambling industry – not an easy feat considering up until then, gambling on games of chance in Italy was stringently prohibited. The changes to Italy’s gambling laws saw legalisation of real money luck-based games, while opening the Italian market to other European gaming vendors, provided they met certain requirements.
The changes paved the way for regulation of the online gambling industry, and in 2009 Italian authorities amended remote gambling laws to allow foreign gaming operators to apply for Italian licensing to provide real money online casino games in Italy. In order to receive licensing from the Autonomous Administration of the State Monopolies (AAMS), foreign operators must meet the following requirements:
- Manage games in Europe with a turnover of no less than EUR 1,500,000 in the last 2 years
- Function at a high technical level, providing stable, secure and easy-to-use services to be founded as a capital society
- Have reliable administration members
- Have its official residence and technical support in one of the EU countries
- Pay EUR 350,000 to AAMS for technical management, administration and supervision.
Following these changes, some of the biggest European gambling operators now have licensing to offer real money online casino games in Italy. However, there are still several leading offshore casinos that accept players from Italy without having AAMS licensing, which are amongst some of the most popular online casinos in Italy. If playing at an online casino licensed offshore, we recommend using a VPN (virtual private network) for added security and being aware of the online gambling laws that apply to you.
Best casino sites for Italian players
An online casino has to do more than simply accept Italian players to get our recommendation. It needs to tick all the right boxes when it comes to offshore licensing, software, game variety, security, deposit options and customer service. We’ve searched the Internet to test hundreds of online casinos to find the best ones for Italian players.
If you’re looking for a safe, reputable online casino that accepts customers from Italy with payments using Euros, these are our top three picks:
1/ 32Red – 32Red has a reputation as one of the best licensed casinos on the Internet, so we’re thrilled that Italian players are accepted here. 32Red runs multiple venues, including a dedicated casino, poker site, bingo lounge and live dealer casino suite, each which are licensed by the upstanding UK Gambling Commission and the Government of Gibraltar. You’ll find a large selection of real money casino games at 32Red, including hundreds of slot games, roulette, blackjack, video poker, table games, instant-win scratch cards and more. Games are available for instant-play directly over your Web browser or by downloading 32Red’s exclusive casino software. 32Red is also one of the only reputable online casinos to offer a downloadable mobile app for iOS and Android users.
2/ Royal Vegas – Roxy Palace is powered exclusively by Microgaming, which is one of the best, most reputable developers of online casino software, offering games in both instant-play and via downloadable software. You’ll find some of the most popular slot games on the Web here, including hot titles like Game of Thrones, Bridesmaids, Avalon, Mega Moolah, Lost Vegas, Jurassic Park and hundreds more. Along with a wide variety of slots and table games, Roxy Palace offers a fantastic live dealer casino, with games available from Microgaming and Evolution Gaming, including live Playboy Bunny dealer games.
3/ BetOnline – BetOnline may not be the most attractive online casino out there, but it does accept Italian players and offer a safe space to play casino games, poker and bet on sporting events and horseracing. The casino offers roulette, blackjack, craps, poker, baccarat, video poker and a large collection of 3D slots from legendary game studio, BetSoft, all which are available to play for either free in demo mode or for real money bets directly over your Web browser. BetOnline is licensed and operated in Panama, accepting players from all over the world with a range of currency options.
Keen to try any of these sites? Sign up using our links above and you’ll be eligible for some exclusive new player welcome bonuses when depositing real money for the first time.
How to play for real money using Euros
The EUR is widely accepted by online casino vendors, so Italians can play using their local currency without having to worry about currency conversion fees. Deposits can be made using reliable payment methods, including Visa, MasterCard, Neteller, Skrill, Paysafecard, ecoPayz, Entropay and direct bank transfers using wire transfers or Citadel Direct. All deposits at our recommended casinos are protected by a minimum of 128 Bit digital SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption to ensure player safety at all times.
Not sure if you’re ready for real money play? Games can be trialled for free at any of our recommended casinos, without having to register for an account. If you like what you see, sign up using our links to get access to some great bonus offers, and make an instant deposit to start playing for the chance to win real money from the comfort of home.