Government takes aim at 90 illegal online gambling sites in South Africa
The National Gambling Board (NGB) sent an official request to Google Africa to remove ten websites offering illegal gambling services during the 2024/25 financial year.
South Africa.- South Africa has seen a surge in illegal online gambling, as approximately 90 online gambling websites currently operate in the jurisdiction without proper licences. The revelation, made by Minister Parks Tau in a recent parliamentary briefing, highlights the challenges the government is facing in regulating and enforcing online gambling laws.
According to Tau, these websites, which are registered and licensed in foreign jurisdictions, offer unauthorised betting services to South African residents, thereby evading the country’s gambling laws.
Their activities result in substantial tax revenue losses for the government and also put users at risk of fraud, money laundering and poor consumer safeguards. However, their offshore status complicates efforts to regulate them.
Rather than directly confronting the offshore operators, the NGB engages with the technical platforms and service providers that facilitate their operations in South Africa. Tau noted that a joint effort between internet service providers and law enforcement has already led to the blocking of 20 sites this year. The minister added that the Finance Intelligence Centre is investigating the potential ties of the betting operators to illegal financial transactions.
The National Gambling Board (NGB) also sent an official request to Google Africa to remove ten websites offering illegal gambling services during the 2024/25 financial year. However, according to Tau, the tech giant hasn’t removed any of these sites yet.
Another challenge the NGB faces is understaffing, with only two personnel tasked with identifying and tracking websites across the country.
To bolster enforcement efforts, Tau revealed that the board is allocating R596,000 (€28,609)for the 2025/26 financial year. He said: “The National Gambling Board has allocated financial resources to the extent of R596,000 for the identification of illegal gambling websites. This includes travel costs and legal enforcement forum meetings to be held in the 2025/26 financial year period.”
Meanwhile, the minister encouraged the public to confirm if a gambling platform is licensed via the NGB’s website and report any suspicious sites they come across.
