Portugal’s online gambling revenue hits record high, land-based declines

The Q2 total is marginally higher than the previous record of €260.8m, which was set in Q1 this year. Revenue for the three months to 30 June is also 27.2% higher than Q2 2023, according to Portugal regulator Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos (SRIJ). However while online gambling in Portugal is thriving, local operators are warning of a growing threat from the illegal market.

Breaking down the quarterly performance, online casino games accounted for €158.5m of all revenue in Q2. This represents an increase of 29.9% from €122.0m in 2023 but a slight drop from €160.3m in Q1. In terms of spending, players wagered a total of €4.37bn across online casino games during Q2. This is 34.7% higher year-on-year and also 0.4% ahead of Q1.

Of the amounts wagered, slots accounted for 82.3% of total online casino spend in Q2. French roulette represented 6.5% and blackjack 4.9%, with other spending spread across dice games and poker.

Sports betting revenue up YoY, but Euro 2024 impact muted

Meanwhile, internet sports betting revenue jumped 23.1% year-on-year to €103.3m. This is also 2.8% more than the €100.6m generated in Q1 of this year.

Players spent €462.3m betting on sports during the quarter, an increase of 29.3% from last year. However, the quarterly total is 19.5% lower than Q1 despite the impact of the Euro 2024 football tournament, which began towards the end of Q2.

Football accounted for 69.3% of all sports bets place during the quarter. Tennis bets were 19.9% of the total, basketball 6.8% and other sports 4.1%.

Increase in new registrations and self-exclusions in Q2

In terms of new registrations, a further 287,600 customers signed up for an online gambling account in Q2. However, Portugal also saw 136,800 people cancel their accounts.

This meant by the end of the quarter, over 4.4 million consumers in Portugal held an active account.

As for self-exclusions, 47,300 consumers chose to block themselves from gambling in Q2. As such, the total number of player self-excluded from online gambling stood at 256,900 by the end of June.

In addition, the SRIJ sent closure notifications to 38 websites deemed to be operating illegally in Portugal.

Land-based market in the country

Turning to the land-based sector, total revenue during Q2 was €63.7m, a 4.5% drop from last year.

Physical slot machine revenue edged up 0.8% to €50.0m, representing 78.4% of all quarterly revenue. The remaining €13.8m came from casino-style and bingo games, down 19.9%. Of the latter category, the SRIJ reported declines across baccarat, blackjack and American roulette. 

Portugal facing “danger” from illegal operators

The reports come after Portugal’s leading gambling trade body warned of “imminent danger to user safety” after a survey highlighted the nation’s failure to ward off illegal operators. While the market continues to grow, licensed online operators are subject to hefty taxes, including an 8% turnover tax for sports betting and a 25% GGR tax for icasino.

Last week, the Portuguese Online Gambling and Betting Association’s annual study revealed 41% of all players use unlicensed gambling platforms. Among age groups between 18 to 34, this figure rises to 52.1%. The body has previously filed criminal complaints against social media influencers promoting illegal sites.

According to a statement sent to Lusa, APAJO’s annual study on Portuguese Online Gambling Habits reveals that 41% of players use illegal gaming platforms, despite 90% claiming to know that a license is required to operate in Portugal. The Association points out that there are four illegal operators in the national Top15 of online gaming platforms.

The study, which involved a sample of one thousand people, indicates that the percentage of players who exclusively use licensed platforms does not exceed 60%, a value reached in the 2022 survey, after being below 50% in the first years.

“The scenario is even more serious if we look at the 18-24 and 25-34 age groups, where the exclusive use of licensed operators does not exceed 52.1%,” the Association emphasizes.

For Ricardo Domingues, president of APAJO, “licensed operators, legislators, and regulators must aim for a greater preponderance of exclusively legal online gambling, I would say never less than 80% of users.”

The leader believes it is possible to achieve this goal “in a relatively short time with the right measures to combat illegal operators and evolve licensed products.”

The Portuguese licensed market has been growing steadily since it’s launch in mid-2016, namely by attracting users that were previously on the black market operators and also via the natural migration of consumers from the landbase to the online products. 

The latest study (July 2023) from Aximage on Portuguese Users Online Gambling Habits shows the percentage of users playing exclusively in the licensed environment (in opposition to playing also or exclusively in the unlicensed environment) seems to be hitting a ceiling around 60% and APAJO expects that through construtive dialogue between legislator, regulator, industry, consumers, scientific and technical experts, as well as other stakeholders, the local industry can continue to evolve and to provide a safe and entertaining enviroment for portuguese gambling consumers.