Belgian Online Gambling Overtakes Land Revenues

This week Belgium's gaming regulator the Belgian Gambling Commission announced that online revenues overtook land casino revenues in 2021 for the first time ever.

Gaming revenues as a whole hit €969.1 million, down 17.8%. This was largely related to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and compares to €1.18 billion in 2019-2020. Online casino revenues were €277.9 million, with online slots generating €156.8 million. Online sportsbetting revenues were €161.2 million, up 27.1% from the year prior.

Land casino revenues were €54.9 million, while arcade revenues were €81.1 million. Cafe slots had revenues of €113.7 million, and retail sportsbetting revenues were €123.6 million.

Regarding the results Belgian Gambling Commission Chair Magaili Clavie said, "The year 2021 was marked by the ongoing health crisis and successive closures that again hit physical gaming establishments hard after their gross margin had already fallen by 47% in 2020.

"Online gambling did grow. In 2021, there were an average of 136,888 players online per day, twice as many as three years ago. This form of gambling surpassed physical gambling for the first time and deserves special attention because it is more accessible, both in space and time, and can pose a risk factor for gamblers.

"It is more necessary than ever to protect online players and gamblers by providing them with a safe and controlled gaming environment. This objective requires that every effort be made to prevent them from being tempted, consciously or not, to turn to an increasingly large and aggressive illegal offer that provides no protection and undermines the channelling policy."