Portuguese gambling revenue up 39.3% in Q3

Gaming revenue reached a new high mainly due to online gambling.

Portugal.- The Portuguese gambling regulator, the Serviço de Regulação Inspeção de Jogos (SRIJ), has reported that the country generated gambling revenue of €159.1m in Q3. The figure was up 39.9 per cent year-on-year.

Online casino revenue was up 38.5 per cent year-on-year to 89.8m. That’s a rise from the €81.8m recorded in the previous quarter and makes Q3 the fifth straight quarter in which online casino revenue has surpassed previous records.

Players staked €2.48bn on online casino games, also a record and up 39.1 per cent year-on-year. The most popular online product was slots, which accounted for 80 per cent of stakes, followed by French roulette (7.6 per cent), blackjack (4.9 per cent) and Banca Française (3.6 per cent).

Sports betting generated €69.3m, up 40.1 per cent year-on-year. Stakes were up 17.3 per cent year-on-year to €348.2m. However, this was below the amount recorded in both Q1 and Q2. The most popular sport for betting was football, accounting for 78 per cent of bets. Tennis made up 17.1 per cent of bets, while all other sports combined accounted for just 4.9 per cent.

The total number of players in the market hit a record high, reaching 771,300, a year-on-year increase of 18.4 per cent. This is despite the fact that the number of new players was lower than in the first quarter and second quarter of the year, at 194,700.

Of the 771,300 players, 36.1 per cent only bet on sports, 29.4 per cent only on online casino games and 34.6 per cent on both. The number of self-excluded players rose to 138,000.

During the quarter, the SRIJ ordered Internet service providers to block 63 illegal gambling company websites and ordered 60 operators to shut their websites. It also ordered the removal of 130 online videos promoting illegal gambling sites.

See also: Portugal launches public tender for land-based casinos