There are some roles you quietly update on LinkedIn. And then there are appointments that call for a bit of fanfare — or at least a press release. Michel Groothuizen, Chair of the Netherlands Gambling Authority (Kansspelautoriteit), has landed firmly in the second category: he’s been unanimously appointed as a general board member of the Gambling Regulators European Forum (GREF) for the 2025–2027 term.

GREF, for the uninitiated, is where Europe’s gambling regulators gather — not to gamble, thankfully, but to exchange wisdom, war stories, and best practices about keeping the market safe and fair. Think of it as a very serious book club for people who regulate games of chance.

Groothuizen, who’s never been shy about his ambitions, isn’t just showing up for coffee and consensus. “I want to strengthen GREF’s position and help it grow,” he said. And he’s bringing a mission with him: harmonizing regulatory standards across Europe. “A good example? Making it crystal clear that gambling under 18 is a hard no-go. Not negotiable.”

In his new role, Groothuizen aims to strengthen GREF’s influence and support its continued development. “My personal mission is to work toward common standards for gambling supervision in close cooperation with my fellow regulators,” he said. “One clear example is the shared principle that gambling under the age of 18 is absolutely unacceptable.”