Spanish Gambling Revenue 2020 – A Successful Year Passed

We know something about gambling revenues for sure: they can peak in one month and fall back to the bottom the next. it is hard to predict how and why they rise or sometimes drop. But if we take one case at a time, we can usually find the motives. Now, we take the Spanish gambling revenue of 2020 and why it showed a remarkable growth last year. One could assume that the previous year caused a fracture for almost all businesses. It is, of course, true for hospitality, for anything in connection with traveling, and so on, but it is different for the majority gambling industry! With online gambling sites in Spain becoming more and more popular in the last few years, the business could easily survive. And not just survive, even grow! (We have to, of course, exclude online sportsbook sites in Spain, like 888sport, since the sports industry was on hold.) The country’s national gambling regulator, the so-called Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego (DGOJ) reported a 13.8% year-on-year increase in online gross gambling revenue last year. So, the Spanish gambling revenue of 2020 is something to watch out for!

Gambling laws in Spain

The laws concerning gambling in Spain are not considered to be strict. It is the Spanish Gambling Act, Law 13/2011 of 27 May that regulates such activities. May it be carried out through electronic, computer, telematic, or interactive means where in-person channels are rendered accessory. According to the country’s Directorate-General for the Regulation of Gambling, it is “responsible for authorizing, supervising and inspecting these activities to ensure the proper functioning of the industry and protect participants and vulnerable groups.” Also, “each of Spain's 17 autonomous communities is free to set its gambling policy. The general default rule is that gambling is forbidden unless previously authorized by the regional government of the specific autonomous community. Until 2010, state-wide gambling was reserved to state-owned operators.”

However, stricter regulations might be coming in 2021 as the Ministry of Consumer Affairs continues with new measures that started in 2020. These will concern the implementation of and better control over advertising restrictions. These came into force in late 2020, as well as increased licensing fees for operators in Spain. So far, it did not have any impact on the Spanish Gambling revenue (in 2020), but this year it might do.

The increasing Spanish gambling revenue of 2020

The data supplied by the DGOJ reported a 13.8% growth in the gambling gross revenue (GGR) of 2020. What does that exactly mean? It implies, of course, that more people were playing their money on online casino sites in Spain. But how does that show in numbers? The GGR for 2020 was 850.7 million euros up from last year’s 748.2 million euros! There was a 33.7% of growth in casino GGR to 350.8 million euros. Poker GGR was also up 35.8% to 110.3 million euros. People also played more bingo by 40.8% GGR increase – that equals 16.5 million euros. In the meantime, contest revenues blew up by 185.7%! However, there was one field that did not meet up these expectations. Keep reading to find out!

Sports wagering in Spain

Despite the overall growth, online sports betting sites in Spain were a little less popular than usual. There was a 7.1% year-on-year decline to 365.1 million euros. Still, operators in Spain, like 888sport can be happy: sports wagering is still the primary source of GGR for operators. The GGR amounted to €103.5m, representing 44.8% of the total GGR in the quarter. So, despite there was no increase, the sports betting industry can still say that 2020 was a good year. And what is coming next? We will see about that after the changes rolling out in connection with the restrictions in advertising. Maybe 2021 will not see such a boost in Spanish gambling revenue as 2020 did. Let us wait it out!

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