Belgium’s FPS Economy is using court-backed orders that can reach more than internet service providers. After being blocked, illegal gambling sites often come back through mirror domains, search results, ad links, DNS workarounds, or infrastructure services. The Belgian model now tries to close those routes as well.
According to FPS Economy, the procedure extends beyond online copyright infringements and also applies to the illegal operation of online gambling services. The specialised service within the Directorate-General for Economic Inspection can assist the Brussels Business Court and help define how blocking measures should be applied.
Court Orders Set the Tempo
The official list shows how the model is now being used against gambling sites. FPS Economy’s public list shows five gambling-related decisions published in April 2026: one on April 1, two on April 9, one on April 24, and one on April 30. The latest page update was recorded on April 30.
One of the latest April decisions followed an order from the Dutch-speaking Business Court of Brussels concerning two websites named in the petition. The same order also covered replica sites and direct-access addresses linked to those websites.
Intermediaries that fail to comply with the order may face a one-off penalty payment of €500,000. In the April 23 decision, the payment becomes due from the sixth working day after the implementation deadline set by the department.
Search, CDN, and DNS Services Enter the Frame
The Belgian model is different from a typical access block. In April, Microsoft and Google were ordered to remove disputed FQDNs and URLs from Bing and Google Search results and deactivate ads that facilitate access to the targeted websites in Belgium. Cloudflare was also addressed in its role as host, CDN, or reverse proxy provider.
Internet providers still have their place in the process. Through DNS redirection or similar techniques, they should direct users accessing the blocked domains to an FPS Economy warning page.
Belgium’s Anti Online Piracy & Illegal Gambling Office representative Paul Laurant said that the five April decisions led to 49 websites being blocked via six types of intermediaries:
ISPs;
CDNs;
Search engines;
Advertisement providers;
Registrars;
Alternative DNS services.
Bottom Line
Belgium is trying to make the cost of a comeback higher for illegal operators. A new mirror domain becomes increasingly useless when search visibility, advertising reach, DNS routing, and network infrastructure can all be challenged. Whether or not the model proves effective comes down to Belgium’s ability to apply the system fast and avoid overblocking lawful services.
