What is wrong with the UK gambling industry?
For decades, the online casino industry in the UK has been growing steadily. That progress has been accelerated in recent years due to rapid advances made in the tech world. Nowadays, online casino enthusiasts of the wide range of games including roulette, poker, slots, and blackjack can access online casino platforms from the palm of their hand on their smartphones, rendering land-based establishments almost redundant.
The progression witnessed in the new digital era has also led to new discussions surfacing around the subject of gambling vulnerability and on a higher level, whether higher taxes should be imposed on betting companies. However, despite the importance of those two issues, there is another problem lurking in the underbelly of the online gambling world that is becoming an increasingly larger problem for the UK economy and vulnerable individuals.
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Rise of Illegal Operators
As of this year, there were a reported 37.4 million online accounts at online casinos in the UK. To put that into greater perspective, that is 54.02% of the population (2024). However, while the majority are logging onto legitimate, regulated online casino or online bookmakers, there is a group of players that are entering the illegal market. It is not illegal for players to place wagers on unlicensed operators, but the provider is breaking laws by offering online gambling services.
Data collected by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) showed that players were spending an average of five minutes on illegal websites, but the more alarming figure is the fact illegal online gambling operators make up 9% of the overall gambling marketplace, which is worth £8.2 billion. This is a figure that the UKGC are taking seriously in their attempt to “disrupt illegal gambling.” With dynamic and responsive tactics, the aim is to not just reduce, but to eliminate the epidemic that is harming the regulated industry and individuals.
Part of a wider problem
While eliminating illegal gambling operators will clean up the UK gambling market on the whole, the result would also help stamp out the wider problem of gambling addiction in the UK. A reported 1.4 million Brits have an issue with gambling according to Watchdog and with plenty of conversation circling around Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Budget and the potential rise in taxes on gambling companies, protagonists involved in the gambling industry are holding their breath for the decision on 26th November.
But it is the significant presence of illegal online gambling operators that seems to be the root of the problem from a societal and economical perspective. The ability to play on non-UKGC casinos, where players who are even self-excluding can circumnavigate the restrictions in place on the online gambling industry in the UK, poses a threat to already vulnerable individuals, while draining the economy of billions being spent instead on these unregulated websites.
All eyes on the Budget
In just under a month’s time, Rachel Reeves will announce a Budget that could have shattering consequences for the gambling industry in the UK. If taxes are raised on betting companies, as expected, tens of thousands of jobs could be lost, thousands of high street branches could close, but an estimated £4 billion could be raised. The polarising consequences of this decision proves how recognised the gambling industry is in the UK. But while most eyes will be on the Budget, the work continues to counter the illegal gambling market that remains one of the biggest threats in the gambling industry.
