Stake has blocked access to its online casino and sportsbook for users in Ireland after engagement with the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland. The operator restricted the entire platform last week, having been serving the country without a licence under Ireland’s new betting regime, and Irish users now get a message saying Stake is unavailable from their location because of licensing restrictions.
Stake has since confirmed it intends to seek authorization from the GRAI. A company spokesperson said registrations in Ireland are closed and that Stake plans to apply for a licence under the new system, without saying when an application goes in or when the platform could return.
Ireland’s new remote betting licences took effect on July 1, once the GRAI took over the sector from the Revenue Commissioners. Applications opened in February under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024, with operators required to pass suitability checks covering ownership, funding, compliance, and the ability to pay customer winnings. The regulator had issued 33 licences by mid-September.
The GRAI told The Irish Times that a major international gambling operator and two prediction market platforms had voluntarily geo-blocked Irish users following regulatory intervention. None were named, though the gambling platform is understood to be Stake, while Kalshi and Polymarket have also restricted access in Ireland. Several other betting operators have stopped serving Irish customers after contact from the authority.
The regulator is also working with companies that have left the market to make sure Irish customers get back money held in their accounts. GRAI can sanction unlicensed operators or pursue action through the High Court, and The Irish Times reported that more than 100 operators are currently under examination as the authority starts enforcing the new framework.
Stake blocked its full website even though the current licensing phase mainly covers remote betting. Its platform combines sports betting with casino games, and The Irish Times noted that the casino side isn’t yet covered by the new Irish regime, so Stake could have restricted only the affected betting products. It pulled access to everything instead while it weighs a licence application.
Medium Rare N.V., the company behind Stake.com, is licensed in Curaçao and has been expanding its locally regulated operations over the past two years. Stake has picked up licences or regulated market access in Brazil, Peru, Mexico, and Denmark among others, so the Irish withdrawal fits a broader shift toward domestic approvals rather than leaning on the Curaçao licence alone.
The UK went the same way in 2025, when Stake’s previous white-label operator, TGP Europe, surrendered its Gambling Commission licence. Stake geo-blocked British users afterward, though the brand has stayed visible through its Everton sponsorship, which moved from the front of the club’s shirt to the sleeve for the 2026/27 Premier League season.
Ireland’s regime requires any company providing remote betting to Irish consumers to hold a GRAI licence, wherever the operator itself is based. Applicants have to demonstrate that they’re fit to operate, hold sufficient financial resources, and can fund winnings from lawful sources, while licensed companies also face new consumer protection requirements.
Stake stays unavailable to Irish users for now, and its public statement confirms only an intention to apply rather than an application already under review. Any return depends on GRAI approval under the same licensing system that has already pushed Stake, Kalshi, Polymarket, and other unlicensed operators to restrict access in Ireland.