ATG reports drop in visits to unlicensed gambling sites in Sweden
The channelisation rate remains in line with the Swedish gambling regulator’s last estimate.
Sweden.- The horse racing betting operator ATG has reported that online gambling channelisation in Sweden improved slightly in Q3. It estimates that the channelisation rate was between 74 and 85 per cent, up from 70 to 82 per cent reported in the same period last year.
The upper end of ATG’s estimate is in line with the calculation of 85 per cent made by the Swedish gambling regulator Spelinspektionen for 2024. However, both estimates are below the government’s target of 90 per cent, which was set when Sweden launched regulated online gambling back in 2019.
The figure may be slipping, as Spelinspektionen had estimated 86 per cent in 2023. ATG has typically estimated channelisation lower than the official estimate, while some have suggested that the target rate should be revised.
Drop in visits to unlicensed gambling sites
ATG believes that visits to unlicensed websites have continued to see a steady decline since Q1 2024, falling from 3.4 per cent to 2.3 per cent. The three most popular unlicensed sites were owned by Infiniza Limited, the operator claimed, with Unlimitcasino.co topping the list with 174,391 visits in Q3, followed by Luckyjungle.com (144,992 visits) and Refuelcasino.com (139,097).
Of the 20 most visited unlicensed websites, ATG says that 16 had games from major content providers, while eight offered direct deposit and withdrawal from Swedish bank accounts with BankID via the payment technology company Krofort. Three of the 20 most-visited unlicensed sites are already on Spelinspektionen’s black list.
ATG’s estimates show a stark difference between the online casino (79 per cent) and sports betting (85 per cent) verticals. However, its calculations are based on an assumption that average revenue per visit is at least 10 times higher for unlicensed operators.
Controversy over call for bonus ban
Hasse Lord Skarplöth, CEO of ATG, said the rise in channelisation was a positive sign. He also reiterated the operator’s call for a ban on bonus offers in Sweden.
“I have long advocated a total bonus ban,” he said. “I am often met with the argument that it would drive players to the unlicensed market where bonuses flow. But if we succeed in strangling unlicensed gaming further, that protest will lose its force.”
ATG made the call for a bonus ban in Sweden in a joint op-ed with state-controlled Svenska Spel earlier in November. However, commercial operators have criticised the proposal, arguing that it would benefit ATG and Svenska Spel themselves.
BOS, the igaming trade body, argues that the two operators still benefit from the visibility they gained through their former monopoly operations before online gambling in Sweden was liberalised in 2019, meaning they have less need to run promotions.
