Source: United Arab Emirates Ministry of Economy (MOEC)
• With a national lottery now established and its first casino resort set to open in 2027, eyes have been on the UAE as a market with potential. The UAE may be primed for the casino hotel market, as hotel stay and spend has been increasing year-on-year.
• Hotel spending is shown to be increasing at a higher rate than the number of hotel guests, suggesting that tourists are paying more per person on their trips. This could be bolstered by casino resorts, where large amounts of spend can be generated by casino play and entertainment at the property.
• The UAE has been attempting to bolster its tourism industry as part of GDP diversification efforts. In 2023, tourism accounted for 11% of the UAE’s GDP, or AED 220bn ($59.9bn). The MOEC predicts this will reach 15% by 2031.
Source: Sportradar
• Sports are highly popular in Latin America and Brazil in particular, being the country with the highest number of match fixes, according to Sportradar. Indeed, in 2022, 152 matches showed suspicious activity in Brazil, more than Africa and North America combined. This number reduced to 109 in 2023.
• The Philippines has also seen a notable increase in suspicious alerts, from 37 to 65 year-on-year. Peru also saw sizeable match–fixing growth year-on-year, from 18 to 38. It is interesting that several emerging markets are also markets with high rates of suspicious alerts.
Source: Evolution Financial Reports
• Growth across all of Evolution's regional revenue segments has remained steady, with all segments reporting higher revenue in Q3 2024 than Q1 2023.
• Asia's quarterly revenue grew from €154m ($166.9m) in Q1 2023 to €202.2m, up 31.3%. LatAm grew 24.7% to €37.4m, while oher regional revenue grew 38.4% to €20.2m.
• At the start of 2024, Asia began outperforming Europe in terms of revenue, with Europe net revenue coming to €191m while Asia net revenue came to €197.6m. This trend has continued throughout 2024, with Asia making €7.3m more than Europe in Q3 2024.
Source: National Gambling Board
• Like many nations, Covid-19 caused a sharp decline in GGR in South Africa, according to reports from the nation’s National Gambling Board (NGB). However, the gambling industry in South Africa was shown to recover quickly despite the circumstances, with FY21/22 recording a GGR of R 34.4bn ($1.99bn) - more than the R 33bn reported for FY19/20.
• Indeed, while GGR from FY17/18 to FY19/20 grew by R 4.2bn, GGR from FY 21/22 to FY 23/34 grew by R 24.9bn. Of FY23/24’s R 59.3bn GGR, 60.5% came from bets and 29.3% came from casino. This market shift in favour of betting was first noticed during Covid-19, when sports betting overtook casino in terms of GGR contribution.
Source: Sportradar
• When looking into emerging markets, it is also important to assess the activity already present in the market, whether this is done by regulated channels or otherwise. Sportradar, for example, produces a yearly report on the regions most affected by match fixing, which may be important for new sportsbooks entering the market to keep in mind.
• Europe is the continent most affected by match fixing, with Sportradar reporting 667 incidents in 2023. However, regions like Asia have also seen significant increases in match fixings, from 161 in 2021 to 302 in 2023.
Source: Macau Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ)
• As of 1 October 2024, all operators who have not requested authorisation from the Prizes and Betting Secretariat (SPA) will be suspended. Moreover, operators that hadn’t requested authorisation through the Ministry of Finance’s betting management system SIGAP will be deemed illegal until gaining authorisation from the Treasury. Despite this, applications have continued to be placed on and beyond 30 September 2024.
• Operators have been requesting authorisation since late May, with the first listed by SIGAP being Kaizen Gaming under its Kaizen Gaming Brazil brand on 26 May. The biggest day for requests was 20 August, with 52 applications listed on the SIGAP website, as those who applied by this date would be included in the first wave of legal operators on 31 December. Applicants on this day included Stake Brazil, SkillOnNet and Meridian Gaming Brasil.