The European market is one of the main pillars in the global iGaming landscape. Even with multiple countries presenting quite a robust environment in terms of regulation, Europe continues to set the benchmark in terms of its stable and consistent year-on-year growths. The old continent’s gross gaming revenue is expected to reach an impressive €134 bn in 2027, making a leap of nearly 33% compared to the €100.8 bn from 2019, as reported by the EGBA (European Gaming and Betting Association).
When it comes to the 2027 market share estimation, the forecast indicates a €79.7 bn in market revenue generated from land-based versus €54.3 bn generated from online gambling, accounting to a difference of 32% in favour of the brick-and-mortars. This showcases that the land-based is still holding the biggest market portion, despite the challenges it faced in recent years due to the Covid pandemic, although, its year-on-year growth projections are rather mild in comparison to the online.
The growing market share of the online sector is following trends which have become more pronounced with the pandemic, as the market is seeing more players shifting more towards online entertainment due to the convenience, accessibility and availability of a wide range of gaming and betting options in one place.
A look back at the year prior, sports and other types of betting were the second favourite online gambling product by revenue. In 2022 it generated €13.6 bn or 35% of Europe’s online GGR, right after Casino’s top spot of €14.9 bn or 39% of the GGR. Technology refinements, improved content offering, but also global sports events such as the World Cup contributed to making sports betting as one of the industry’s most engaging verticals last year.
Betting is becoming a true fan-favourite form of entertainment. As forecasted by the EGBA, total betting will reach circa €20 bn in GGR by 2027, an increase of 47% compared to 2022. By the same year, betting is expected to become the industry’s defacto largest vertical, surpassing the Casino vertical. Due to this growth, more operators are seeking to add sportsbook to their online portfolio.
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Focusing on the horse racing niche, the sector is expected to witness a milder growth that the wider sports betting landscape. EGBA projections will see the sector grow by over 20% eventually reaching the €2.2 bn GGR mark come 2027. In comparison, the sports betting vertical – excluding horse racing – is forecasted to grow by a sheer 130+%, from the €7.7 bn in gross gaming revenue registered in 2019 to the €17.9 bn of 2027.
The increasing prevalence of frequent daily mobile usage and widespread internet penetration have paved the way for a shift in online betting habits, with mobile devices becoming the primary choice for many players. It is projected that by 2027, around 64% of players are expected to use mobile devices as their primary betting device. This shift will also have somewhat of a domino effect on the operators when developing their player acquisition and retention strategy.
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