The North Savo District Court has convicted Finnish content creator Jouko Kärkkäinen of a gambling offence for marketing offshore casinos to a local audience.
Kärkkäinen, who posted and streamed under the handle “pottukoira”, promoted offshore gambling offers between May 2023 and February 2024 in breach of Finland’s Lotteries Act.
The court ruled on 18 June that his activity across Instagram, Kick, and a linked website constituted illegal marketing of casino operators other than state monopoly Veikkaus.
He has been ordered to pay 80 day-fines totalling €2,480, plus an additional €80 victim surcharge.
The ruling arrives at a significant moment, as Finland is actively transitioning away from its longstanding Veikkaus monopoly model.
Licence applications for the new regulated market opened in March 2026, with the fully licensed market set to go live on 1 July 2027.
Until that date, the ban on marketing non-Veikkaus operators remains fully in force and is enforced by the National Police Board.
Kärkkäinen denied the charge during proceedings, arguing his content was entertainment rather than commercial marketing and was not specifically aimed at Finnish audiences.
The court rejected this defence, citing repeated casino promotions written in Finnish, including offers such as “150 free spins for just €10”, each posted alongside a link to pottukoira.com.
That website itself carried affiliate links to the casinos, strengthening the court’s view that the activity was clearly commercial in nature.
Kärkkäinen further argued he did not control the website and had been based in Tallinn for part of the period covered by the charges.
The court found it immaterial who operated the site, because Kärkkäinen had allowed its links to appear on his channels and had personally added promotions through a chat-bot tool.
Judge Adelina Komulainen stated: “Punishing a gambling offence does not require that the defendant be shown to have received consideration or financial benefit from the act.”
Komulainen added: “Kärkkäinen’s purpose must be regarded as having been to promote the gambling companies’ business operations.”
Kärkkäinen retains the right to appeal the ruling, with a deadline set for 20 July.
