Panama gaming market records $2.49bn in bets through September 2026
Regulation2 min read
Panama’s Contraloría General de la República recorded $2,492.9 million in betting volume from January to September 2026, up 16.6% year on year. Online platforms generated $626.2 million, a 53.7% increase, while National Lottery sales fell 1.7% to $612.7 million.
Panama recorded $2,492.9m in gambling bets from January to September 2026, up 16.6% from $2,138.6m a year earlier, according to the Contraloría General de la República. The increase amounted to $354.3m over the nine months.
Type A machines accounted for $1,698.3m in bets, or 68.1% of the total, up 7.5% year on year. Online gambling platforms took $626.2m in bets, up 53.7% from 2025, the largest increase among the categories. Their market share rose from 19.1% to 25.1%. Type A machines and online platforms together accounted for 93.2% of recorded betting volume.
Gaming tables, including blackjack, roulette, baccarat and poker, recorded $128.1m in bets, up 17.7%. Sports betting venues recorded $13.6m, up 1.8%, while bingo recorded $4.9m, up 4.3%. Hipódromo Presidente Remón recorded $20.2m, down 7.7%, while instant games fell 39.2% to $1.5m.
September betting volume reached $285.1m, up 13.1% from September 2025 but below the $310.1m recorded in August, the highest monthly figure that year to that point. The Contraloría's statistics exclude type C machines, so total betting volume could be higher than the official figures show.
Lotería Nacional de Beneficencia sales fell 1.7% to $612.7m from January to September, compared with $623.1m in the same period of 2025. Sales recovered by 8.1% in September to $63.2m. The electronic Lotto and Pega 3 draws were suspended after their last games on 21 April, while traditional draws continue.