iGaming revenue increases in Portugal in 4Q18

The iGaming sector in the Portuguese market posted a strong performance in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Portugal.- The Serviço Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos do Turismo de Portugal (SRIJ), Portugal’s gaming regulator, released this week the statistics for the fourth quarter of 2018, which show that the iGaming market increased revenues in its second full year of operations in the regulated market.

The report details that iGaming revenue totaled €152.1 million in 2018, which represents a 24% increase when compared to the previous year. The biggest contributor to this increase was sports betting as it helped with €78.9 million, approximately €20 million more than what was registered in 2017. It is believed that this growth was due to the FIFA World Cup tournament that took place in June-July 2018.

Despite the World Cup taking place in the second quarter of the year, the fourth quarter was the most successful for operators, considering operators achieved revenue of €43 million, up €7 million from 4Q17.

The sports betting segment posted its strongest performance in the three-month period ended December 31: operators reported revenue of €21 million and total bets reached the €110 million mark.

Online casino also reported its peak in the fourth quarter and posted a high of €21.5 million, with online slots being once again the most popular choice for consumers. For the full year, the segment totaled €73.2 million, up from the €54.4 million registered a year before and representing a 34% increase year-on-year.