Europe’s Biggest Online Gambling Markets
There are no special European Union legislation in the area of gaming services. It has always been this way for European nations to organise their gambling businesses. This is as long as they follow the laws set down by the European Court of Justice. In this instance, the capacity to provide services or establish a firm in another European country is critical.
The majority of European countries allow some type of online gambling. You’ll find that some governments allow all kinds of games, while others only allow specific sorts, such as betting, poker, and casino games. Various European countries have built monopolistic regimes for internet gambling services, but these appear to be melting away, as Hungary is considering allowing private gaming enterprises to seek a licence.
Let’s take a look at the different European gaming markets and how they’ve evolved over time.
United Kingdom
In 2005, the United Kingdom was one of the first European countries to provide remote gambling licences. This was done in order to combat offshore gambling sites that did not pay taxes in the countries where they operated. Since then, it has grown to become Europe’s largest regulated market, with numerous online sportsbooks and casino sites. In September 2020, the sector earned a Gross Gambling Yield of £5.89 billion, according to the study.
The online gambling industry in the United Kingdom is being driven by the rising adoption of the internet and smartphones. Collaboration between private companies and third-party software providers to produce user-friendly gaming UI is also propelling the industry forward. Furthermore, the introduction of low-cost mobile applications has enabled gamers to access casino sites from anywhere they have an internet connection.
Furthermore, the spread of COVID-19 in 2020 confined a large proportion of the population of the United Kingdom to their homes. As a result, a significant movement toward a variety of free and paid recreational activities, including online gambling, has occurred.
Italy
Italy’s Gross Gaming Revenue in 2021 reached a high of €161 million in April. In Italy, gambling has a long history dating back to the Roman era. It’s no surprise, then, that Italians adore betting on sports and casino games.
The Italian government did, however, enact the Dignity Decree in 2018, which prohibits gaming advertising. Gambling corporations and even sports teams, particularly football teams, pushed hard against this because these relationships generate a lot of sponsorship money.
In 2019, the Italian gambling industry received €110 billion in wagers from players who spent money on casino games, poker cash, and poker tournaments.
Germany
In 2019, the total gaming revenue was 14.3 billion euros. Furthermore, German gaming revenue is expected to hit 3.3 billion euros by 2024.
The country’s chiefs of state gathered at the start of 2020 and adopted gambling guidelines that enable both gambling websites and online poker.
In July 2021, the new limits took effect. As a result of the new legislation, online casino firms can now provide poker, slot games, and sports betting to German players. However, due to differing legislation in different parts of Germany, different games are permitted.
With a population of over 80 million people, Germany would be Europe’s largest market, but the new gambling restrictions are more stringent than those in Italy and the United Kingdom.
Spain
Spanish gamers spend more than 1.9 billion euros every year on Codere-owned brands alone, according to estimates. This translates to about €480 per person, or 15% of the average net family income in Spain.
Lotteries, football, horse racing, bingo, video slots, and their favourite online casinos are all popular with Spanish gamblers. Despite this, Spain’s official national lottery is still a popular form of gambling.
The enactment of the Spanish Gambling Act in 2011, which legalised online sports betting, forever changed the betting landscape in Spain.
The Spanish government, like the Italians, has banned gambling advertisements. This took effect in 2021 and has resulted in decrease gambling profit.
France
In 2019, Spain’s total gaming revenue was €8.9 billion. In 2019, France’s total gaming revenue was €12.2 billion, up from €12.2 billion the previous year. France is a relatively gambling-friendly country in comparison to other European countries. In this country, all forms of gaming are regulated and deemed legal.
Land-based gambling establishments, in fact, offer legalised poker, slot machines, sportsbooks, and horse racing betting. Except for casino games, all of these gambling activities are available through online suppliers. There are various land-based and online gambling establishments in France.
The FDJ and PMU are the French government’s two gambling monopolies and two of the country’s largest gaming brands. PMU refers to horse racing, whereas FDJ refers to lotteries, sports betting and bingo.