Polymarket continues to face pushback across key European jurisdictions after the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland became the latest watchdog to order the geoblocking of the prediction market platform.
This comes shortly after the French Gambling Authority issued a similar request, blocking Polymarket over what it cited as risks to consumer safety and a lack of compliance with local gambling laws.
Ireland Orders Polymarket to Block Access to Platform
Polymarket has complied with both countries’ regulators and has listed them on its list of restricted countries.
In Ireland, an effort is ongoing to attempt to regulate prediction market platforms, and as of July 1, 2026, any remote betting service operator – prediction markets included – must hold a relevant license from the gambling authority.
“The GRAI has several live investigations open in relation to black market gambling, with a view to potential prosecutions in due course,” the regulator told media outlets.
The regulator did not mention Polymarket explicitly by name, but the company was named by a report in the Irish Examiner, which also shared further comments by the regulator.
“Following intervention by the GRAI, a major prediction market has geoblocked its service, which means that it has voluntarily restricted access to its platform from Ireland,” the spokesperson said.
Polymarket Runs in the Same Pickle in Multiple Jurisdictions
The regulator confirmed that the company has complied with the request to voluntarily geoblock consumers, as Polymarket continues to face challenges in Europe, with Germany, Italy and Spain also assuming a similar stance against the platform.
The Dutch Gambling Regulator has made a similar remark, arguing that Polymarket constituted a form of gambling and was therefore subject to the pertinent laws in the country.
European jurisdictions are not the only ones to have had success against Polymarket, with attorneys general and judges siding with individual states in the United States against the platform, and notably in Kentucky and Michigan.