In January 2021, Virginians placed their first legal online sports bets. Since then, the Commonwealth has gone further, with casinos opening in Bristol, Portsmouth and Danville.
Across the Atlantic, Norway has spent the same years moving in the opposite direction. There, almost all gambling is reserved for two state-controlled operators, and since 2025 the government has blocked foreign betting sites at the internet level.
The contrast says a lot about how differently two wealthy democracies think about the same activity.
Virginia: from ban to boom in a few short years
For most of its history, Virginia was among the more cautious states on gambling. That changed quickly after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal ban on sports betting in 2018. Virginia’s lawmakers legalized online sports wagering, and on January 21, 2021, FanDuel became the first licensed sportsbook to take bets in the state, with DraftKings, BetMGM and others following within weeks.
The Virginia model is built on competition. Multiple private operators hold licenses, compete on odds and promotions, and pay taxes to the state. Bettors must be 21 and physically located in Virginia, and wagers on in-state college teams are not allowed. Alongside the sportsbooks, the state has approved a handful of brick-and-mortar casinos, including the Hard Rock project in Bristol. The bet is that regulated competition will pull players away from offshore sites while generating revenue for the Commonwealth.
Norway: two companies and a firewall
Norway has chosen the opposite approach. Under the country’s gambling act, which took effect in 2023, the right to offer gambling is reserved for two state-controlled operators: Norsk Tipping, which runs lotteries, sports betting and online casino games, and Norsk Rikstoto, which handles horse racing. No private company, Norwegian or foreign, can legally offer betting to Norwegians.
The reasoning is public health. Norwegian authorities argue that a single, state-owned provider can be required to put player protection ahead of profit. That means mandatory loss limits, strict rules on how products are designed and very little marketing. Profits go back to sports, culture and volunteer organizations rather than to shareholders.
For years, the weakness of the model was obvious: Norwegians could simply open an account with a foreign betting company licensed in Malta or elsewhere. That loophole is now closing.
The DNS block: how Norway shuts the door
Since January 1, 2025, Norway has used DNS blocking against unlicensed gambling sites. In practice, the Norwegian Gambling Authority instructs internet service providers to redirect users who try to visit a blocked site. Instead of the betting page, they land on a page from their internet provider explaining that the site offers gambling that is not legal in Norway, according to the Norwegian Gambling Authority.
The first round of blocks came in March 2025 and covered 57 websites, followed by 47 more in June the same year. Before the first round, the authority had warned dozens of companies, and many of them chose to withdraw from the Norwegian market rather than be blocked.
Side by side, the contrast is stark. In Virginia, several licensed private operators compete for customers, bettors must be 21, and the tax revenue goes to the state. In Norway, sports betting is offered only by the state-owned Norsk Tipping, the minimum age is 18, profits go to sports, culture and volunteer work, and offshore sites are blocked rather than out-competed.
DNS blocking in plain English
The technique sounds technical, but the idea is simple. Every time you type a web address, your device asks a DNS server, which works like the internet’s phone book, for the numeric address of that site. Normally the phone book answers, and the page loads. Under a DNS block, the internet provider’s phone book is instructed to give a different answer for specific gambling domains, sending the user to a warning page instead.
The site itself is not taken offline, and nothing is deleted. It simply becomes harder to find for anyone using a Norwegian internet provider’s default settings. That is also why the method is debated: a user who changes DNS settings or uses a VPN can get around it. Norwegian authorities have been open about this. The goal is not to make illegal gambling impossible, but to make it inconvenient enough that most people stay with the legal options.
So what do Norwegian bettors actually do?
One consequence of the monopoly is that the competition Virginians see among sportsbooks happens elsewhere in Norway: among the independent sites that analyze matches. With only one legal sports betting provider, there is little point in comparing bonuses. Instead, Norwegian bettors put their attention on the analysis itself.
That has helped create a lively ecosystem of football statistics and analysis sites that publish daily oddstips – Norwegian for betting tips – built on form, match data and tactical previews. It is one of the most searched betting terms in the country, reflecting how much Norwegians care about the reasoning behind a bet rather than the promotion attached to it.
OddsEkspert.no, one of the Norwegian sites in this space, focuses heavily on match statistics, team pages and league data across the Premier League, La Liga and Norway’s own Eliteserien. The emphasis on numbers over promotions is a direct product of the regulatory environment: when the betting product itself is the same for everyone, the analysis is where sites can stand out.
What Virginia can learn from Norway, and vice versa
Neither model is perfect. Critics of Norway’s approach argue that DNS blocking is a blunt tool that can be bypassed with a VPN or alternative DNS settings, and that a monopoly limits consumer choice. Supporters reply that the block does not need to be perfect to work. Most casual players will not take technical steps to reach an illegal site, and the friction alone reduces exposure.
Critics of the American model point to the explosion in sports betting advertising and to reports of rising calls to problem gambling helplines since legalization. Supporters argue that legal, taxed and regulated betting is safer than the offshore market it replaced, and that states now have the tools to require responsible gambling measures from operators.
What both countries share is the goal of steering players away from unregulated operators. They simply disagree on whether competition or control is the better way to get there. For Virginia, where the casino build-out is still underway, Norway offers a useful reference point for what the other end of the spectrum looks like.
A different relationship with the game
Perhaps the most interesting difference is cultural. In Virginia, the sportsbook app and its promotions are front and center. Sign-up offers, odds boosts and same-game parlays are marketed during broadcasts, and the product itself is the main event. In Norway, where advertising for gambling is tightly restricted, much of the conversation around betting happens on analysis sites, in forums and in the football coverage itself.
Sites such as OddsEkspert.no are built around understanding a match first, through statistics and previews, rather than around sign-up offers. That is not to say Norwegians are immune to gambling problems; Norway has its own challenges there. But a market where the attention is on the analysis rather than the promotion is a mindset that responsible gambling advocates on both sides of the Atlantic would probably welcome.
Frequently asked questions
Is online sports betting legal in Virginia?
Yes. Online sports betting has been legal in Virginia since January 2021, when FanDuel became the first licensed sportsbook to accept bets. The market is regulated by the Virginia Lottery, which licenses operators and sets the rules they must follow. Bettors must be at least 21 and physically located in the state while placing a bet, and wagers on in-state college teams are not permitted.
Can Norwegians bet with foreign sportsbooks?
Only Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto may legally offer gambling in Norway. The rules are aimed at the companies rather than the players, so Norway restricts access instead of penalizing individuals. Since 2010, banks have been required to block payments to unlicensed gambling operators, and since January 1, 2025, the authorities have also used DNS blocking to make those sites harder to reach.
What does oddstips mean?
Oddstips is the Norwegian term for betting tips: analyses and predictions for upcoming matches, usually based on form, statistics, injuries and team news. It is one of the most searched betting terms in Norway. Because Norwegians have only one legal sportsbook, much of the interest in betting goes into this kind of analysis rather than into comparing bonuses and promotions between operators.
Gambling should be entertainment, never a way to make money. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit 1800gambler.net for free and confidential support.
This content is provided for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. AFP editorial staff were not involved in the creation of this content. If you or someone you know is struggling with a gambling problem, a helpline is available at 1-888-532-3500.
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