Norway is the home of several well-known poker players including world renowned poker player Annette Oberstad, as well as, Thor Hansen and Johnny Lodden. You probably won’t find any of Norway’s great poker players belly up to a Norwegian poker table anytime soon though. It wasn’t that long ago when Norway was flush with poker rooms located throughout the country. In 2013, the laws that govern the live gambling scene in Norway took a change for the worst. Online poker was outlawed in Norway, completely outlawed.Now here’s something that makes Norway unique, live poker is against the law, but amidst this prohibition on live poker games and well, all things casino, online poker is legal in Norway. Allow me to clarify that however, online poker is a legal activity in Norway so long as it’s played legally at Norwegian license holding online poker sites. Well that makes things a bit trickier then doesn’t it? The only two companies legally authorized to offer Norwegian gamblers a venue in which they can make wagers are Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto.
Online Poker in Norway
As we mentioned above, online poker in Norway is explicitly legal only if the site that the poker player is playing on is licensed in the European Union, and more specifically in Norway.The idea was made to prevent any problems with Norway poker players getting their money on to poker websites. With limited transactions; Norway was able to create a monopoly, this monopoly did not hinder poker in Norway, there are still thirty sites offering play to Norwegian poker players
Top Norwegian Online Poker Sites
The following sites are known to be reputable online poker sites, that also accept Norwegian poker players, they’re not necessarily licensed by Norway, however most are licensed and legally operating by licenses issued by European Union based licensing entities.The following sites are known to be reputable online poker sites, that also accept Norwegians:
- 888 Poker
- PokerStars
- Power Poker
- Party Poker
- Titan Poker
- Poker Nordica
- BetSafe
- Betsonn
Live Poker Rooms in Norway
By 2013 mostly all of Norway’s casinos are no more. However there are still many gamblers to fill the void. Most poker players including Annette Obrestad have become very renown by participating in tournaments held mostly in Ireland and North America.
Well-Known Norwegian Poker Players
Norway has a pretty solid amount of Poker Players
- Annette Obrestad
- Thor Hansen
- Andreas Hoivold
- Johnny Lodden
Norwegian Poker Deposit Options
Until recently, in Norway, players were able to use a credit cards to deposit or withdraw money on an online gambling website. However recently the Norwegian government passed a law that made getting or receiving any money from a Norwegian gambling site against the law. They did so to reinforce their ban on online gambling. However some would disagree and say that it was an attempt to further their monopoly on the online gambling in Norway.
Mobile Poker in Norway
Despite there being legality issues with poker in Norway; there are several ways to gamble in Norway. One of those ways is Mobile poker. As technology becomes more and more convenient; the addition of mobile poker is on the rise as the most convenient form of poker. In Norway poker online poker is on the rise. Mobile poker can be played on any phone or mobile device that is Java compatible on apps such as PokerStars.
Major Norwegian Poker Events
The most anticipated event for Norwegian poker is the Norwegian Championship of Poker 2013. This tournament is happening on March 16 through March 24th. The series of tournaments is being held in Dublin Ireland but is only open to poker players who live in Norway. Players who want to participate in this tournament can sign up with PokerStars as long as their at least 18 years of age.
