EGBA publishes EU online gambling key figures for 2017

27.11.2018

New industry data from 2017 shows that EGBA members are leading the way in popular digital entertainment.

Brussels, Today – European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) members in 2017 had more than 12 million active customers, held licenses in 19 EU member states, processed 354 million online payments, contributed €325 million support to sports, and sustained 33,000 digital and high quality jobs in the EU across 14 member states, according to new 2017 data released today by the industry group.

“Europe’s online gambling sector is a growing and popular form of digital entertainment – but with this growth comes responsibility to ensure that people are kept safe while playing on online gambling websites. This new data shows EGBA members are at the forefront of the sector’s development, interacting with millions of customers and processing nearly a million payment transactions each day.” – Maarten Haijer, Secretary General, EGBA.

EU-28 Online Gambling
– Key figures 2017 –

Licensing

• EGBA companies collectively possess more than 134 different online gambling licenses to provide their services in 19 EU member states, averaging 7 licenses held per member state.
• 56 licensing audits in total were completed by EGBA companies to ensure their compliance with local laws and regulations.

Customers

• Over 12 million Europeans had an active[1] online account with EGBA member companies, equivalent to 2.4% of Europe’s total population.
• EGBA companies had a high average return to player/pay-out rate of 93.06% to their customers. That means that an average customer received €9.30 return for every €10 they bet.
• Customers placed a bet on average every 17 days with EGBA companies.
• An average customer[2] spent €10 each time they placed a sports bet with EGBA companies, excluding pay-outs.

EU market[3]

• Online gambling had a 20.7% share of the total EU gambling market activity, while 79.3% was land-based, including lotteries, casinos and bookmaker shops.
• The online share of the gambling market is expected to grow to 24.9% in 2020.
• Sports betting (40.3%) was the most popular form of online gambling in Europe, followed by casino games (32.1%), lottery (13.3%), poker (6.1%), bingo (4.6%), and other games (3.6%).
• The economic size (or gross profit) of the EU online sector is expected to rise from €19.6 billion in 2017 to €24.7 billion in 2020.

Sports sponsorship

• EGBA members contributed €325 million in financial support to sports federations, leagues and clubs through sponsorships, advertising and sports rights.

Payments

• At least 354 million online payment transactions – payments in and payments out – where processed by EGBA companies, representing nearly 1 million transactions each day.
• EGBA companies offered 31 different online payment types on average to their customers.
• 16 specific anti-money laundering checks were completed by EGBA companies, through licensing audits.

Jobs

• EGBA members have established offices in 14 different EU countries, employing more than 33,000 people, from a range of nationalities, in digital and high quality jobs.

Know Your customer

• EGBA companies invested more than €22.6 million in Know Your Customer checks, which enable identity verification and help to prevent minors from gambling.

For more statistics from 2017, see our new infographic.

– ENDS –

[1] An active account is one which has been used at least once in the previous 12 months.
[2] Excluding VIP customers.
[3] H2 Gambling Capital (2018). Please reference and do not reproduce without H2 Gambling Capital’s permission.