The UK online casino industry has been booming for quite some time now and according to the latest figures from the Gambling Commission, it looks like it won’t be slowing down any time soon. Since 2014, industry turnover has grown from £6.7 billion to almost 17 times that figure in 2021. In fact, from 2020 to 2021 alone, turnover from online casinos grew by 23% from £91.9 billion to £112.7 billion.
Safe to say, things have never looked better for online casinos, according to this review of the best sites on the Yorkshire Post.
Why are online casinos so popular in the UK?
Casino gaming has always been popular in the UK, but since the dawn of the internet and the introduction of the smartphone, the gambling industry has really gathered pace.
There are, of course, many reasons why online casinos are so popular in the United Kingdom, but the main one has to be the convenience factor. The ability to whip out a mobile device and play a few hands of blackjack or have a few spins on the slots is something that has tapped into the gambling psyche of the great British public. Like we said, we Brits have always had a love affair with gambling be it bingo, horse racing, the pools, or casino games. And now that those games are accessible 24/7 from a device you can carry around in your pocket, occasional gamblers can become casual gamblers that play once or twice a week as opposed to a few times a year.
It’s these casual gamblers that have really driven the online industry to new heights. While they may not contribute a lot as individuals, as a segment they are one of the biggest revenue generators in the industry.
Another factor that brought online casino gaming to the fore was the unfortunate events of 2020 and 2021 where the global pandemic forced many gambling facilities to close their doors. This brought gamblers who usually visited live casinos into the virtual space. It was also a period when lockdowns resulted in a large number of consumers stuck indoors with no sports to watch or events to attend. As a result, the Gambling Commission reported a significant spike in online casino gaming turnover — that 23% mentioned earlier was during this period.
Although the pandemic certainly did have an impact on the industry, it’s expected that the industry will continue on this steady upward trajectory.
Massive investment in UK online casinos
The list of newly launched online casinos in the UK is growing at an ever-increasing pace with as many as 15 opening for business in the first quarter of 2022 alone. This figure is particularly impressive given that there is significant investment required for each new casino. From design to development, software to licenses—launching an online casino requires no small amount of investment. That 15 separate businesses took the opportunity to launch in Q1 of 2022 speaks volumes as to the expected growth rate of the market.
Such is the demand for online casino gaming that even bookmakers that were once dedicated to sports only have launched their own casinos. Names such as Betfred and bet365 are no longer all about the horse or the football. These companies have adapted to meet consumer demand and carve their own slice of what is proving to be an extremely lucrative pie.
Can this continue?
We certainly don’t need to consult with Mystic Meg to predict how the industry will grow over the next year or so. All we need to do is look at the stats. Even since the live casino industry fully reopened following the lifting of pandemic restrictions, online casinos have continued to experience high volumes of traffic. Although we have yet to see official statistics from the Commision beyond March 2021, the general feeling is that the industry hasn’t missed a beat.
There is also a significant shift in attitude towards online casino gaming from other areas of the industry such as National Lottery and bingo license holders. These companies are making subtle moves towards more casino-style instant gaming options to meet consumer demands. This along with the traditional bookmakers launching their own online casinos will no doubt help this industry boom to continue for much longer than analysts had first expected.
To put it simply, we’re now in the Golden Age of online casino gaming here in the UK, and it’s not stopping anytime soon.
