The total turnover of gambling in Europe increased by 7.5% in 2029, reaching 87.2 billion euros of gross gambling revenue. However, the net income is reduced by 13% compared to the levels of 2019. The online game has increased considerably, especially for mobile betting. In fact, the use of mobile devices such as tablets and cell phones to engage in gambling is growing. If it is predicted that even this year the majority of European online bets will be carried out on mobile, given that it is expected to grow year after year, up to more than 60% by 2026. Let’s see together how the global situation is ambito gambling, analizando anche i dati italiani.
The global situation: the nation with the highest per capita expenditure
A research carried out by H2 Gambling Capital has allowed us to discover the 10 nations with the highest per capita spending on gambling. In first place is Australia. I love the slot machine, the casino and the sports betting. The spending for every Australian is really high: each person loses an average of 1288 dollars a year in gambling. This figure is equal to 2.4% of the annual income. In second place is Singapore, where casinos are especially popular. The population of the island earns a lot, but loses a lot by playing. Indeed, the loss per player is around 1,174 dollars a year. In third position is Ireland. In Ireland, sportive betting on dog racing is very popular. In this nation, I spend about 588 dollars a year for gambling. After Ireland, Canada is placed, where 3 out of 4 Canadians are betting. All anno si spendono sui 568 dollars. In fifth place in the ranking is Finland, where the gambling sector is regulated by the government. Every player loses around 533 dollars a year and those who play more are over 65. In sixth position is our country. More details on gambling in Italy will be in the next paragraph. Andando più giù in the classification, there is Hong Kong, considered the Las Vegas of Asia. In the country, I lose about 500 dollars a year for gambling. In Norway, as in Finland, gambling is significantly limited and regulated by the government. However, Norwegians spend an average of 448 dollars per person. In the last two places there are Greece and Spain. These two countries behave in a similar way to the game, with the difference that the per capita income in Spain is higher than in Greece. Online casinos and sports betting are very popular.
Gambling in Italy
Based on the data collected by Nomisma in collaboration with the bank BPER, the total volume of gambling in Italy in 2020 has reached 88.38 billion euros, a decrease compared to 2018. The winnings are equal to 75.36 billion euros , with a net loss of 13.02 billion. The gambling market in Italy is therefore very developed. The main income comes from card or skill games (37.5 billion). These are followed by newslot and vlt (18.97 billion), sports betting (11.34 billion), lottery and scratch card (8.17 billion), lotto (6.41 billion), virtual betting and betting exchange (3, 81 milliards), numerical totalizer games (1.26 milliards) and, finally, Bingo (0.92 milliards). Negli ultimi tempi, inoltre, si stanno difudinando semper di più even i nuovi online casino AAMS. The average amount of bets is 31.6 euros for men and 22.9 euros for women. The age group that spends the most money is between 25 and 34 years old. The Osservatorio Gioco d’Azzardo 2021 of Nomisma is limited to two age groups: the young between 14 and 19 and the over 65 age group.
Boys between 14 and 19 years old
The majority of young people engage in gambling out of curiosity (39% of the total) and for fun (36%). Much less do it for the need to win money (18%) and the conviction of being able to win easily (12%). Regarding online games, the majority of the under 19s dedicate themselves to online sports betting (42%). As for games in presence, instead, Gen Z’s favorite is Gratta e Vinci, used by 56% of respondents. Characteristic of this group is the average weekly expenditure of less than 5 euros.
People over 65 years old
In 2020, well 25% of the over 65s are dedicated to gambling. 16% of them have played with a monthly frequency. The interesting fact is that for the majority of the over 65s, the game is a habit. In fact, only 5% have started playing in the last 12 months. The motivations that push older people to play are mainly the desire to distract from life’s difficulties (35% of the total), followed by those who play out of curiosity or to pass the time (29%). Unlike Gen Z, they are not more prone to online gaming. Preferiscono quello in presenza, recandosi presso agenzie di commesse, bingo hall, bar and tabaccherie. Only 3% of the elderly play online. In the elderly, men and women devote themselves to the game. The majority of the over 65s play Gratta e Vinci (17%), followed by the totalizer numerical games (14%) and the Lotto (13%). Solo pochi if they dedicate to alle scommesse sportive or to the online casino.
Regional differences
According to a 2018 study, if you consider the number of inhabitants and the number played, Abruzzo is the region with the highest per capita collection 1,767 euros), followed by Lombardy and Emilia Romagna (respectively 1,748 and 1,668 euros) . In the Mezzogiorno, however, these values are far below the overall average. If, however, the expenditure is related to the earned income, the South of Italy will present the highest value of percentage of income destined to gambling. If he speaks of 8.3 percent, compared to a national average of 7.2 and that of the North equal to 6.5 percent. The highest propensity is in Campania (10.2 percent).
