RETAbet Secures Two SRIJ Licences in Portugal, and Its CEO Has a Sharp Warning for Spain

Key Points

• SRIJ issued RETAbet SRIJ Licence Nos. 033 for fixed-odds betting on sports and 034 for online slot machines via retabet.pt to start operations in Portugal on 24 July 2026.
• Q1 2026 saw the online GGR of Portugal touch €323.7m, marking an increase of 13.7% compared to Q1 2025 as per SRIJ figures.
• According to CEO Xabier Rodríguez-Maribona, Spain’s prohibition on advertising has given unlicensed operators an advantage.

RETAbet Enters Portugal With Two Licences and No Outside Money

RETAbet, the operator that bases its operations on the retail betting shops in northern Spain, managed to secure its first expansion beyond the Iberian Peninsula. Two licenses have been granted by the SRIJ, the regulator in Portugal, on 24 July 2026, License No. 033 for the operation of fixed-odds sports betting and License No. 034 for online slot games – all to operate through retabet.pt. RETAbet has been operating retail betting businesses in Spain since 2008 and online since 2012, after having obtained its DGOJ license. It has been present in Peru for five years now. Portugal is its third jurisdiction and first outside the two it has already worked in.

Xabier Rodríguez-Maribona, CEO of RETAbet Group, called Portugal a “natural” next step. What is special about the expansion is not its geographical character but the way it is financed: the whole of Portugal has been launched out of the company’s pockets with no outside investment and loans.

What the Licences Cover?

The SRIJ issued both licences through its Gaming Commission on 24 July 2026, formally placing Retabet Portugal, SA within the country’s regulated market. The operator will offer fixed-odds sports betting and online slot games through retabet.pt, going up against Flutter and Evoke, which already hold positions in Portugal, alongside local casino groups Casino de Portugal, Casino Estoril, and Solverde, each of which has built an online platform in addition to its land-based presence.

In order to start its operations, RETAbet has recruited personnel who speak Portuguese, working out of its office located in the Bizkaia Technology Park of Zamudio and from a new tech hub it has set up in downtown Bilbao. The company has a workforce of over 600 employees in Spain and Peru. Rodríguez-Maribona said RETAbet analysed potential markets for some time before settling on Portugal, with three conditions guiding the search: a fully regulated framework, attractive taxation, and sufficient market space for an operator of its size to compete without being absorbed by larger rivals.

Portugal’s Online Market Posted €323.7m in Q1 2026

Timing of entry is consistent with a market that has been experiencing robust growth. Portugal’s online gaming gross gaming revenue (GGR) stood at €323.7m in Q1 2026, an increase of 13.7% on the previous year when the amount was €284.7m in Q1 2025, according to SRIJ statistics. Online casino games contributed 63.1%, totalling €204.2m, while sports betting was responsible for €119.5m or 36.9%. For the whole of 2025, the annual online GGR exceeded the €1.2 billion mark, which was achieved for the first time ever in Portugal. There were about 18 S

“At RETAbet, we prioritise profitable growth,” Rodríguez-Maribona said. “This is not something we say to excuse poor expansion results; it is a guiding principle for our company. Over the years, we have expanded first in Spain and then in Peru, always without sacrificing a stake in the business or taking on significant debt to fund our growth.”

The Spain Debate: Advertising Bans and a Growing Black Market

The Portugal expansion is the cleaner story. What Rodríguez-Maribona said about Spain’s regulatory direction is more pointed. RETAbet is profitable in Spain and, through its subsidiary Ekasa, is the only Basque company authorised to offer online betting nationwide in the country; most licensed Spanish operators are based in Ceuta or Melilla. Despite that position, the CEO is openly critical of where Spain’s regulation is heading.

Spain implemented advertising regulations using the Royal Decree approach in phases from November 2020 to August 2021. The law did not allow sports endorsements, restricted the majority of the gambling commercials on TV to broadcast during the period from 1 am to 5 am, and banned the use of any celebrities and influencers in gambling commercials. According to a peer-reviewed research study performed in 2025, the number of new registrations of gambling accounts online in Spain was 55% less than in 2020, that is 3.01 million in 2020 to 1.35 million in 2023.

Rodríguez-Maribona does not dispute the intent. He disputes what the rules have produced. “In the past, licensed operators were able to advertise and support sport, but we have now been prohibited from doing so,” he said. “This has left customers with fewer ways to distinguish between legal and illegal offerings. As a result, we have also lost the competitive advantage we previously held over unlicensed platforms.”

The numbers support his position. An EY study found Spain’s illegal online gambling market is worth approximately €231m, with 23.4% of surveyed online gambling users having used unlicensed platforms, in many cases without knowing it. “You only have to look at Facebook to see illegal betting offers,” the CEO said. “Banning advertising and sponsorship is a mistake. In fact, the market has continued to grow since the ban was introduced. I have not seen any scientific study demonstrating a correlation between betting sponsorships and gambling addiction.”

Spain’s Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and the 2030 Agenda is now preparing further restrictions. The DGOJ launched a public consultation in May 2026 on proposed rules covering influencer marketing and acquisition bonuses. On a separate proposal to introduce shared deposit limits across all operators, Rodríguez-Maribona said the timing was wrong. “I understand that the regulator faces a certain amount of political pressure to continue introducing new rules and controls, but I believe Spain already has one of the most heavily regulated and closely monitored markets,” he said. “Sometimes, these matters need to be considered for longer to avoid taking a step in the wrong direction.”

Kambi Odds Feed+ and Content Partnerships Underpin the Launch

Alongside the licence, RETAbet has been building out the technical foundation for its Portuguese sportsbook. In July 2026, Kambi Group signed a multi-year Odds Feed+ agreement with RETAbet Group, giving the operator access to Kambi’s full traded odds library through a single API integration into its proprietary sportsbook. Kambi’s Odds Feed+ draws on €17 billion in annual global liquidity and AI-powered pricing tools.

RETAbet’s Chief Operating Officer, Igor Extremo, said the deal provides “high-quality odds across a wide variety of sports, allowing us to offer greater depth and coverage to our customer base and leverage Kambi’s proven expertise to enhance our platform.”

On the casino side, Hacksaw Gaming signed a content partnership with RETAbet covering Spain and Peru, while Betsoft Gaming agreed a deal to distribute its titles through retabet.pe in Peru in January 2026. Both agreements expand the game library RETAbet carries into Portugal.

Expert Analysis

The international expansion strategy of RETAbet has been deliberately planned. The company has been involved in operating only in countries that have regulatory structures in place. In addition, it is worth noting that for each market expansion, the firm utilises its own funds rather than raising capital through borrowing or dilution of ownership.

The Spain advertising debate is where the article’s wider industry relevance sits. A compliant, profitable operator with 18 years in one of Europe’s strictest gambling markets is arguing publicly that advertising restrictions have produced a stronger black market, not a smaller one. “Introducing a ban is easy,” Rodríguez-Maribona said. “Correcting or reversing it is the difficult part.” For regulators in Portugal and elsewhere currently weighing similar measures, that is a position grounded in operational experience rather than industry lobbying instinct, and it deserves to be taken seriously.