This is only the tip of the iceberg in the regulatory sea change that could potentially serve as a short-term anchor for the UK's gambling industry. However, Esports betting in live virtual tournaments saw a global rise in popularity in 2020 as regular sports betting was essentially halted.Īnother facet that could further dent into the UK's gambling industry would be a ban on sports sponsorship by gambling and sports betting companies. The Irish Times reported that the British Horseracing Authority likely experienced a £250 million loss in revenue due to those restrictions. Of course, those were numbers from before the restrictions put into place in the UK between March-June 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Casino games (mostly slots) made up £3.2 billion, whereas sports betting, led by football and horse racing, comprised £2.3 billion. Online gambling was reported to be the largest sector of the UK's gambling industry, with about 40% of the total market share. In a biannual report published in November 2020, the GC showed a £5.7 billion Gross Gambling Yield (GGY) from the remote betting, bingo, and casino sector, between April 2019-March 2020, an 8.1% increase from the previous year. The Gambling Act 2005, landmark legislation that sought to reform the gambling industry, established the UK's Gambling Commission (GC). The Future of Gambling and Sports Betting in the UK PixabayĪccording to The Guardian, revenue from internet-based casinos rose by about £1 billion between 2016 and March 2020, to just over £3 billion.

Sports betting in the uk