Global Gambling Statistics: A $1 Trillion Industry Looms

• Australia has the highest gambling losses—just shy of $1,200 per adult on average.

• Global gambling is predicted to become a trillion-dollar industry within the next decade.

• Ireland, Singapore, and the UK have the highest gambling rates per person outside of Australia.

• The average Macau gambler spends over $1,300—the highest in the world. 

• The US is the biggest individual global gambling market.

Gambling industry experts believe the global market will reach $1 trillion by 2030, comprising 1% of the world’s GDP. However, in the last 20 years, there’s been a phenomenal surge in online gamblers taking to the digital casino tables and sportsbook markets, elevating the market to new highs and creating new ways to play. Data provides a crucial tool for those in the industry looking to understand the market's current state and where it could be heading. 

Global gambling statistics delve into every area of the international market. From social casinos to alternate payment methods like crypto and intriguing data emerging from budding new gambling markets and everything in between.

Top 5 Gambling Nations per Capita: USA, Macau, Australia, Singapore, UK

As of Q3 2024, the global gambling market is hovering around the $775 billion mark, with projected annual growth of 3.7% until the end of this decade. Breaking these gambling statistics into two distinct categories–country and type–the figures highlight the key markets that drive most of the activity.

• United States—A growing sports betting market is solidifying the US presence at the top of this list, accounting for $11 billion in bets in 2023. 

• Macau—figures released by the IMF and published by the Financial Times highlight that Macau’s economy grew by 80% last year and is set to grow by over 13% in 2024. Craig Billings, CEO of Wynn, said in 2022: “The latent demand for Macau is undeniable. I remain excited about Macau's long-term prospects.”

• Australia—The Australian Institute for Health & Welfare stated that Australians lost $25 billion in 2023, the highest per capita loss of any country. 

• Singapore—Singapore’s National Council on Problem Gambling revealed in 2017 that Singaporeans, on average, lost $725 to gambling. This makes them the third highest in the world and one of the top five gambling markets per capita.

• The United Kingdom—Brits gambled away over $19.5 billion in 2023, making them one of the driving forces behind the global gambling boom.

Some countries on this list don’t come as a surprise, but the sheer size of Macau and its gambling industry (six times bigger than Vegas) often take people by surprise. If there’s one thing we can take away from these stats, it’s that the market is healthy across multiple international borders and cultures. But what about size? Let’s take a look.

Beyond the States: Top 5 Gambling Powerhouses by Size

All of the below figures are in USD and do not account for per capita; they are purely based on the size of recorded revenue. These figures are based on volume, so many countries make this list simply down to the sheer volume of gamblers. 

#5 Canada — $14.5 Billion

Ontario’s recent changes have made Canada one of the fastest-growing markets in global gambling, at a rate of 6.39% per year, according to leading data gathering group Statista. Although other provinces have yet to follow suit at the time of writing, the growth of the Ontarian tax base from these 2022 legislative changes, if rolled out in other provinces, will propel Canada further up this list. 

Canadian megastars like Drake, becoming heavily affiliated with gambling platforms, have signalled a change in Canadian culture, which could see it surpass France by 2030. If Ontario is a measuring stick of where the market is heading, it could spell a positive spell for gambling companies looking to set up there, and we believe that Canada could leapfrog France in the not-too-distant future. Source: IBISWorld

#4 France — $14.9 Billion

The French are avid gamblers, and like in the UK and Germany, it has been ingrained into the country's culture for a long time. 

Whereas Canada and parts of the US are only just finding their feet in this market, France has long-established sports betting and casino enterprises, which have helped the French gambling industry rise and become one of the biggest in the world. This is despite online casino gaming being prohibited, although legislators are currently looking for ways to change this. Source: ANJ (The French Gaming Authority)

#3 Germany — $15.8 Billion

Germany’s gambling industry, particularly its sports betting sector, is one of the biggest in the world. The new Interstate Treaty On Gambling in 2021 has modernised the industry's approach to marketing and taxation.

Statistics from Statista show that Germany’s betting economy dipped only to pre-pandemic levels in 2023 and was slower to find its feet than other gambling markets in Europe, such as the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Source: Glücksspielatlas Deutschland 2023 (Gambling Atlas of Germany 2023)

However, the recent Euro 2024 competition, hosted in Germany, has brought focus on this market again, making it the second biggest in Europe. Here are some key facts about the German gambling market:

• Revenue is set to reach a projected market volume of $7.1 billion by 2029. (Source: Statista)

• According to the same data—the number of users is set to grow above 12 million.

#2 The United Kingdom — $18.5 Billion

Gambling in the UK is unique as it was the world leader in modern-day legislation following the emergence of the UK Gambling Act 2005. This legislation has helped the country spearhead the European gambling market and endured the test of time. It is often used as a foundation for other countries, most notably the US and Canada, to establish their gambling legislative frameworks. 

Gambling revenue in the UK is close to $19 billion per year, and figures released by Statista show that almost half of the UK gambling population have placed a bet–whether it’s on football or lottery competitions–so it’s not a surprise that it generates such wealth.

Whether it’s a sporadic lottery punt or a growing market such as eSports, which, according to the UK Gambling Commission, has seen 36% of 18-24-year-olds place a bet on it over the last two years, gambling is etched into the UK culture, and the statistics back that up. Source: The UK Gambling Commission Report, February 2024

#1 Australia — $33.6 Billion

A BBC report in March 2023 highlighted that while Australia accounts for less than 0.5% of the global population, it has over 20% of the world's slot machines.

The pokies market in Australia is worth more than all of the other gambling markets combined. (Source: The Australian Alliance For Gambling Reform)

Australia has half the population of the UK. Still, gambling revenue surpasses it considerably, even in sports betting alone, based on figures revealed by the NT Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade. An April 2024 study by the Australian Institute of Health & Welfare stated that between 70 and 75% of Australian adults had placed a bet within the last 12 months. 

Some Australian pension funds also have close ties with gambling companies, which has further strengthened their presence in Australian society. Similar to the UK, we believe this has resulted from the country’s widespread acceptance of gambling. It has a deep-rooted acceptance within the culture. 

While the US and Canada are still accepting this cultural shift, Aussie and Brit gamblers have had it in their psyche for generations. Ultimately, this means there’s both a wider acceptance and many gamblers relative to the population size, and in our opinion, this is reflected in the figures. Source: The Northern Territory Department of Industry Tourism & Trade

Gambling Hubs: Where the Stakes Are Highest

Organisations and legislative bodies encourage transparency and appropriate data monitoring, which allows a much better understanding of the market. Macau is the most significant global gambling market per capita—by quite a fair distance. Information released by Statista highlights that tourists spent $22.7 billion there last year alone. It also employs over 17% of the country's 600,000 residents. 

The same findings in the Yahoo Finance article show that gaming revenue in Macau surpassed the $2 billion mark by early Q3 of 2024. This overtook Nevada and Las Vegas, which reported figures of nearly $800 million less. 

Information released by Macau Business Magazine showed that 3.2 million visitors visited in February 2024, more than double the 1.4 million arrivals in February 2023. This, again, corroborates the strong uptrend that Macau casinos are experiencing. 

In terms of country, the most significant individual gambling market in the world remains the US–worth around $100 billion in revenue according to 2023 figures released by the American Gaming Association–but with more states recently updating their laws to allow gambling, many analysts and experts believe this figure is set to grow between now and 2030. 

Gender Divide in Gambling: Who's Really Winning?

In the UK, women dominate the bingo market. It’s estimated that over 60% of bingo players in the UK are female, even though the game is undergoing a revamp to attract a digital and broader audience.

Statistically, men are more likely to develop problem gambling issues than women, which is mirrored in the data across every major gambling nation, as detailed by Statista, the BBC, the US National Library of Medicine, and The Northern Territory Department of Industry Tourism & Trade in Australia. Here are some notable gambling statistics regarding gender:

• In the US, men are nearly twice as likely to gamble as women. (Source: US National Library Of Medicine)

• In the UK, the Gambling Commission released data in 2015 and 2019 showing that men are three times as likely to bet on an in-play sports market as women. While the figures haven’t been updated recently, this trend will likely remain the same or increase.

Swipe, Tap, Win: The Mobile Gambling Craze

Mobile apps have become the dominant force in global gambling, which is probably the most obvious stat to expect from today’s piece. Here are some of the key takeaways from today’s number crunching:

• Just over 70% of global gambling activity is via smartphone—more than double that of laptops and desktops at 34.9%.

• There are over 175 million active global gambling users. This figure has continued to grow year on year since 2017 (except 2020).

• Tablets only make up 16%, predicted to grow considerably over the next decade as more casinos design their slot games specifically for iPads and Android tablets. 

Source: Statista

Beyond Real Money: The Popularity of Social Casinos

According to the data, social casinos, where players can use in-game tokens, currencies, and gold coins instead of placing real money wagers, are growing in popularity worldwide. This is especially true in big US states such as California, which do not allow traditional betting platforms.

BusinessResearchInsights released a report showing that the social casino market surpassed $600 million in 2021. Some experts and industry analysts believe it will surpass $1 billion by 2030.

Bet on Bitcoin: The Crypto Casino Craze

Despite the lack of central government research into the growth of cryptocurrency casinos, the numbers suggest a growing number of people seeking alternate payment casinos. Here are some of the facts from the cryptocurrency casino industry:

• Over the last ten years, over $4 billion worth of Bitcoin has been gambled on crypto sites. (Source: CoinMarketCap)

• Over 73% of cryptocurrency bets were placed by male gamblers. (Source: CoinMarketCap)

• Cryptocurrency is the third most used currency for online gambling—behind the US dollar and Euro (Source: SoftSwiss)

Sports Betting Stats

Online sports betting is the biggest subdivision of the broader gambling market. Between 2018 and 2023, the US and Canada devolved powers to state and provincial levels, respectively, which has led to a surge in the number of bettors with access to the sports betting markets.

Sports betting markets mirror the most popular sports. For instance, Statista revealed in 2024 that football (NFL) betting is the most popular market in the US, with $2.5 billion in annual revenue generated via sports betting platforms. 

Studies predict that by 2029, this number will nearly double to $5.0 billion—but if more states open their doors to digital sports betting, this figure could go even higher. 

In the UK, information collated by Statista highlighted that soccer is both the dominant sport and sports betting market. It’s the only standalone sports betting market that surpasses $1 billion in annual revenue in the UK. However, by 2029, this is set to increase by around $300 million. 

Figures released in 2022 showed that Europe accounts for 37% of all online sports betting wagers, but expect North America to take up the lion’s share as the industry grows into the US and Canadian markets. 

Responsible Gambling

While many gamblers can set suitable time and deposit limits, a percentage of them will, unfortunately, develop issues with their betting. Although it can come in many forms, if gambling is beginning to impact your mood or you’re failing to stick to the deposit and time limits you have set yourself, then these are the most evident signs that there’s an issue. 

Seek assistance from a problem gambling organisation or charity if you exhibit any of these behaviours or warning signs, or confide in a close friend or family member. 

Gambling Industry: The Jackpot is Yet to Come

Gambling statistics provide unique insight into developing global patterns, and many industry analysts use them to design marketing campaigns, generate fresh gaming ideas, and explore ways to stay ahead of the competition.

As innovations continue to breed success in the industry, the figures suggest a growing demand for in-play markets, alternate payment methods like crypto, and mobile app betting, but only time will tell.

We don’t see anything stopping the rise of the gambling industry between now and 2030. A perfect blend of US and Canadian markets warming up to the idea, consistent mobile gaming innovation, and greater interconnectivity of sports, social media, and market access all set the bedrock for an industry with significant growth potential.