DataReportal study puts South Africa first for online gambling participation

A DataReportal study of internet users aged over 16 found that South Africa had the highest online gambling participation, at 32.3%, followed by Norway at 31.2%, according to the report. The percentages refer to surveyed internet users rather than the whole population of each country.

In South America, Brazil led participation at 19%, ahead of Chile at 16.6% and Colombia at 13.8%. At the other end of the ranking, South Korea recorded 2.7%, Vietnam 5.7% and Taiwan 6.5%.

The report cited estimates of $105bn to $121bn for the global digital betting market, based on figures from the UK Gambling Commission and US state commissions. That volume represents between 39% and 42% of global gambling spending, the report said.

Colombia's annual gross betting was put at between COP34.5 trillion and COP45 trillion, according to data from Coljuegos and Fecoljuegos cited in the report. The platforms have more than 10.8 million registered active accounts, with BetPlay holding about 51% of the market and Wplay about 14%.

South Africa's online gambling expansion has taken turnover to ZAR1.1 trillion, the report said. Norway was described as a heavily regulated market controlled mainly by state operators Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto, which apply loss limits and player-tracking mechanisms as well as measures against foreign platforms.

The report said the data reflect differences between markets in online gambling penetration, economic volume and regulatory models, in a sector whose reach has widened with digitalisation.