Belgium sees 4-fold increase in gambling activity during Euros

The Belgian gambling regulator has reported 36,418 new players during Euro 2020.

Belgium.- The Belgian gambling regulator, Commission des Jeux de Hasard (CJH), has reported a major increase in betting activity in the country during the UEFA European Championship, which finished on July 11.

The CJH reported that there were 36,418 new players during the football tournament, more than four times the 8,846 new players seen in May. The figures cover all forms of online gambling, not only sports betting.

In the week before and during the tournament, 103,511 new accounts were created. The number of daily players averaged at 191,434, up from 132,818 in May. Meanwhile, 497,047 people used licensed sites during the tournament, making close to 6 million bets.

The delayed Euro 2020 was held from June 11 to July 11, meaning that it finished before the Belgian government passed a proposal to reduce the national weekly loss limit from €500 to €200.

Players bet more when Belgium’s national football team was playing. Daily players peaked at 281,923 for the team’s match with Finland and dropped to 138,591 the day after the team was eliminated. The number of self-exclusions per day also increased, up from an average of eight per day to 12 during the tournament.

The CJH said: “It’s important to multiply gambling prevention information and messages. The CJH is delighted that this could be done, in particular thanks to the ‘Stop in time!’ campaign – carried out in perfect collaboration with BAGO (Belgian Association of Gaming Operators). 

“The CJH fervently wishes to be able to pursue this type of initiative in the future by collaborating with both the legal gambling sector and the charitable sector.”

In April, the CJH launched a campaign to tackle unlicensed gambling under the slogan “Always Play Legally”.

Created in consultation with licensed online gaming and betting operators, the campaign ran until the start of the UEFA tournament.

See also: Belgian regulator blacklists four casino platforms