Gross gambling revenue (GGR) in Europe hit €123.4 billion (£103.1 billion/$133.4 billion) in 2024, a 5% year-on-year increase, according to data from the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) and H2 Gambling Capital.
Published yesterday (24 March), “European Gambling Market – Key Figures 2025 Edition” covers all European Union member states, plus the UK. It includes analysis of provisional data for both the online and land-based gambling markets during 2024.
Online drives gambling revenue growth
Growth was evident across online and land-based gambling activities, but the former saw the steepest increase in GGR. In total, provisional online GGR climbed 11.7% year-on-year to €47.9 billion, or 39% of total GGR for the year.
Gaming accounted for €24.6 billion of this figure, with €23.2 billion attributed to casino-type games, including slots. In total, online casino games drew 45% of all internet gambling GGR during 2024.
Online betting revenue topped €16.2 billion, of which..
Online gross gambling revenue (GGR) in Spain increased by 17.6% year-on-year during 2024, driven by double-digit increases across both online casino and sports betting.
Total revenue for the 12 months to 31 December 2024 was €1.45 billion (£1.21 billion/$1.56 billion), a new record for Spain. This comfortably beats the €1.24 billion reported in online gross gambling revenue (GGR) during the previous year.
Data published yesterday (24 March), by regulator Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego (DGOJ), shows deposits for the year were 19.6% higher at €4.58 billion. Withdrawals were also up 19.7% to €3.15 billion as players won more while gambling online.
Online casino and sports betting records tumble in Spain
Breaking down each market segment, online casino was again the main source of revenue in Spain. Total GGR from this segment hit €730.7 million, up 17%, marking another new record for the country.
Slots generated the most revenue in this area at €472.2 million, up 22.8%. Liv..
Kalshi today (24 March) announced a new responsible gaming hub and a partnership with integrity monitor IC360 as it continues to toe the sports betting line.
In a post on X, Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour said the platform is debuting a ‘Consumer Protection Hub’. This will include “features like deposit caps, trading breaks and voluntary opt-outs”. These features, Mansour said, work in tandem with Kalshi’s “market surveillance team” and regulatory systems.
The phrase “responsible gambling” (RG) is absent from the announcement. However, the features are essentially identical to those offered by regulated sportsbooks. All major operators currently offer deposit and time limits as well as self-exclusion tools.
Mansour also announced Monday that Kalshi is partnering with integrity monitor IC360 for its sports contracts. The CEO said IC360’s data will enhance Kalshi’s “ability to prevent bad actors” and report them to sports leagues and regulators.
No important financial innovation has eve..
Despite heavy opposition from government agencies and native Hawaiian groups, a Hawaii digital betting bill continues to move.
Like gambling expansion bills in other states, HB 1308 in Hawaii has faced opposition from the start. The bill would allow four digital sports betting platforms and no retail locations.
But as the bill has moved through the house and progressed in the senate, what is unique is that much of the opposition has come from government agencies ranging from the attorney general and local police to the departments of taxation and finance. In addition, the department of commerce and consumer protection – which was initially named in the bill as the regulator – opposes the bill.
Support from the industry, meanwhile, has been tangible as well as vocal. Donations made to lawmakers reviewed by iGB reveal that some lawmakers who received donations from the Sports Betting Alliance (SBA) – which prior to 2024 had not made a donation to any Hawaii lawmaker – sponsored gambli..
Online gambling spend and revenue in Ontario both increased year-on-year during February, according to new monthly statistics published by the Canadian province’s market regulator.
Previously, iGaming Ontario released online gambling data on a quarterly basis. However, as confirmed by the regulator in January, it has switched to monthly reports, with the February set published on 19 March.
In February, consumers spent a total of CA$7.13 billion (£3.84 billion/€4.56 billion/US$4.96 billion) on gambling. This is 26.9% higher than last year, with figures now available for each month of regulated igaming in Ontario. The province opened its legal market in April 2022.
Month-on-month, however, the February total was 9.1% behind January.
Online casino leads the way in Ontario
As for how players were gambling, $6.07 billion of all wagers were on casino-type games in February. This beat the previous year by 30.5% and represented 85% of all February bets.
On top of this, online sports bett..
If approved, the $10.5 million fine over the casino's purported AML failures will be the largest in Nevada history behind a 2019 fine against Wynn Resorts.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) entered into a proposed stipulation for settlement with Resorts World Las Vegas (RWLV) on Thursday (20 March) in the latest chapter of a comprehensive investigation that has ensnared the bookmaker of Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter.
The proposed settlement was reached months after the NGCB issued a 12-count complaint against RWLV stemming from the property’s purported anti-money laundering (AML) deficiencies. Given the enormity of the probe, questions arose of whether the NGCB would impose the largest fine against a casino in state history.
The stipulation includes a fine of$10.5 million (£7.7 million/€9.2 million), payable to the Nevada general fund. The proposed monetary penalty pales in comparison to a $20 million fine Wynn Resorts received in 2019 over the company’s failure to i..
Welcome to iGB's State of the Union, a look at the biggest North American sports betting stories we've covered over the week and briefs on others we found interesting.
Mixed bag in Maryland
Maryland’s governor, Wes Moore, unveiled his latest budget proposal on Thursday (20 March) night and it’s not terribly favourable for the gambling industry. The proposal does not include any funding from online casino and does include a sports betting tax hike.
Moore previously floated the idea of doubling the tax rate on wagering from 15% to 30%. In his new proposal, he pitches a 20% tax rate, which is projected to bring in an additional $32 million (£24.6 million/€29.6 million) in tax revenue in FY 2026. The state is facing a $3 billion deficit.
If lawmakers follow through, Maryland would become the third state in two years to raise its betting tax. Ohio was the first when Governor Mike DeWine pushed through a bump from 10% to 20% in July 2023, six months after wagering went live. He..
Player spending on sports betting in Massachusetts fell to its lowest monthly amount since July last year during February, although the state was able to report year-on-year growth across handle and taxable revenue.
Total spend by sportsbook customers in February hit $628.2 million (£484.5 million/€578.5 million). This surpassed last year by 15.8% but was 17.6% behind January’s betting handle in Massachusetts.
Data released yesterday (20 March) by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission show online handle topped $618.6 million in February. Retail sportsbooks also processed $9.6 million in total wagers.
As for taxable gaming revenue, this reached $65.6 million. It beat the previous February by 24.7% but was 30.5% less than January’s $94.4 million record haul.
Breaking this down, online betting generated $65.4 million of total revenue. The retail sector was responsible for $205,391 of the overall monthly amount in Massachusetts.
In terms of hold, the statewide figure for February stood ..
Finland’s government has submitted a bill on its proposed new gambling framework to the country’s parliament, raising hopes of hitting online gambling trade body Rahapeliala Ry’s target of passing laws by mid summer.
Presented yesterday (20 March), the bill sets out a new-look gambling market for Finland. The main change in regulations would be opening up the country’s online gambling market to private operators, following in the footsteps of its Nordic peers Sweden and Denmark.
At present, Veikkaus holds a monopoly on online gambling, across lottery and online sports betting and casino games. Should the bill pass in its current form, this setup would stop by the end of 2026. Veikkaus will, however, keep exclusivity for lottery and scratchcards, as well as retail gaming machines and casino games.
Previous guidelines have said operators could apply for licences from 1 January 2026, when the new regulations officially come into effect. This would be with the view of the new-look mar..
Gross online sports betting receipts in Michigan increased 50.8% year-on-year in February despite a reduction in player spending, while the state also reported growth within its igaming market.
Combined gross online casino and sports betting receipts in February totalled $268.5 million (£206.4 million/€246.0 million). This is 22.9% more than last year but 18.9% behind January in Michigan.
Figures published on 18 March by the Michigan Gaming Control Board also include adjusted totals for February. Total adjusted gross receipts – after promotional spending – across sports betting and igaming was $236.3 million, up 29.8% year-on-year but 17.9% less than January.
Mixed news for sports betting
Breaking down the data, sports betting gross receipts totalled $46 million, up from $30.5 million last year. Adjusted gross sports betting receipts were 110.9% more than the previous year at $27.2 million.
As for how much players spent, handle for the month was $379.8 million, some 31.6% less tha..
With the future of ESPN Bet seemingly in question, criticism of Penn Entertainment is coming from many corners.
Ever since Penn Entertainment CEO Jay Snowden in late February addressed the idea that his company or ESPN could exit their 10-year deal for ESPN Bet in 2026, the wagering world has been raining negatives. Some analysts have downgraded Penn stock and, on 18 March, the founder of theScore and theScoreBet had his say.
Prior to that, two investors had accused Penn of mismanaging its interactive strategy. In May 2024, the Donerail Group said “guidance misses” by Penn executives had “damaged the credibility of the management team and board of directors”. And in January, HG Vora accused the company of “reckless spending” on digital projects.
John Levy was the founder of theScore and theScoreBet, which Snowden called a “very good story for us in Canada” as a result of Penn acquiring them in 2021. Levy, however, this month shared his not-so-warm-and-fuzzy thoughts about his compan..