South Africa’s legal experts speak out: online casino games remain fully legal outside Gauteng
SAROGA members Garron Whitesman and Wayne Lurie clarify that the Supreme Court of Appeal ruling only affects Gauteng, ensuring online betting remains legal in other provinces.
South Africa.- South African legal experts have criticised the National Gambling Board (NGB) for “misleading the public” into believing the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruling bans online casino-style betting nationwide. They emphasise that the decision affects only Gauteng-licensed operators and that betting remains fully legal in other provinces.
Gambling law specialists Garron Whitesman of Whitesmans Attorneys and Wayne Lurie of Lurie Inc Attorneys, both members of the South African Responsible Online Gambling Association (SAROGA), clarified that the SCA judgment applies solely to Gauteng’s provincial framework. The decision is legally binding in Gauteng but does not automatically extend to other provinces, which operate under separate gambling legislation, according to these experts.
The clarification comes after confusion in the industry following the SCA’s October 2025 ruling in the Supabets/CASA case. While the court confirmed that Gauteng-licensed bookmakers cannot offer roulette and similar casino-style games, legal experts stress that operators in other provinces may continue offering online betting, provided they comply with their respective provincial laws.
Whitesman explained that the ruling should not be seen as a national ban. “Residents of every province in South Africa may lawfully place bets on casino style contingencies with bookmakers licensed in any province in South Africa,” he said, according to Polity.org.za.
He added: “The recent SCA judgment was limited to the Gauteng Gambling Act and the licences issued under it. It does not prohibit provincially licensed bookmakers elsewhere in South Africa from offering fixed odds bets on live casino style games, provided they comply with their own provincial laws.”
Second expert affirms online betting remains legal
Lurie reinforced Whitesman’s view that online betting remains legal outside Gauteng. “The SCA interpreted one provincial law; it did not read down the National Act or the laws of other provinces. Nor did it find that accepting bets through an online platform is itself unlawful. Its concern was the subject of those bets – roulette – not the medium through which bets are placed,” he said, according to IOL.
The controversy stems from an NGB statement on October 30, published by IOL in an article titled “SCA judgment tightens online gambling rules, bans bookmakers from offering roulette and casino gaming”.
In that report, the NGB said: “It is unlawful for bookmakers to offer fixed-odds bets on the outcome of a casino game, including the game of roulette, under the Gauteng Gambling Act of 1995.” The Board added that the ruling “extends to all bookmakers across the country”.
The legal experts argue that the SCA judgment merely clarifies the provincial framework rather than rewriting national gambling law. For operators and bettors outside Gauteng, the ruling provides much-needed certainty, affirming that provincially licensed operators may continue offering online betting legally.
In a sector often clouded by conflicting interpretations, the statements from Whitesman and Lurie offer reassurance: the SCA ruling applies only to Gauteng, and South Africans outside the province can continue to place bets legally with provincially licensed operators, supporting the continued growth of South Africa’s regulated online betting market.
