For UK based businesses, the world of iGaming and online gambling is an enticing market to move into. Even in the post-pandemic landscape, the annual gross gambling yield in the UK has continued to swell, with digital betting playing a major role in its ongoing growth. According to Statista, the UK now ranks in second place behind the US in the top online gambling nations list for, thanks to annual revenues of around £6.5 billion from 2022-23, and projected 2024 revenues of £11.01 billion. Those are… big numbers.
With iGaming being such a lucrative market, it’s becoming more and more attractive for British entrepreneurs’ keen to enter the space. Setting up an iGaming company is surprisingly straightforward in the realm of digital businesses, there are relatively low barriers to entry and remote gambling is a highly popular activity – meaning there’ll be no shortage of potential customers. Nevertheless, there are several essential things that budding digital gaming startups need to know.
Key iGaming Stats
● The UK is the world’s second most profitable iGaming markets, sitting behind the US at £18.41 billion and ahead of Australia, at £8.11 billion
● Approximately 27.9% of UK consumers have participated in online wagering activities
● Q1 of 2024 brought a gross gambling yield of £1.4 billion – an increase of 5.5% year-on-year
● Online casinos are the most profitable market segment, accounting for over 60% of the country’s GGY
● An estimated 45 million people play the National Lottery regularly, representing 70% of the country’s adult population – vast, right?
The aforementioned statistics were shared on Euronews earlier this year.
Understanding the UK’s Digital Gambling Market
The iGaming industry in the UK is one of the most mature real money gaming markets in the world. The industry includes sectors such as online casinos, sports betting, poker, lotteries, bingo and other financial competitions, providing entertainment to millions of residents while contributing a substantial amount to the country’s annual GDP. It’s a tightly controlled industry too, with the UK Gambling Commission setting stringent rules that operators need to follow, such as having the proper licenses and provably fair games and wagering platforms.
Economic Impact
This powerhouse industry generated over £6 billion in consumer spend from 2022 to 2023 alone, with the online casino sector dominating with a GGY of £4.0 billion. Of course, iGaming’s economic impact goes beyond consumer spend it’s a thriving ecosystem that supports over 119,000 jobs and adds a considerable boost to the country’s tax revenue — wagering duties rose to approximately £3.5 billion in 23/24, according to data compiled by the London Economic.
Technological Innovation in iGaming
As a core gaming and Big Tech sector, the UK iGaming industry is a leader in technological innovation, leveraging bleeding-edge developments to ensure airtight security and operational efficiency.
Want an example? Well, online casino platforms have become increasingly immersive, and operators invest in live dealer technologies, so they can bridge the gap between the online and land-based gaming experiences – letting players feel like they’re really there. This vertical makes full use of high-quality video streaming to broadcast live dealer games in real-time, enabling players to interact with croupiers and other casino-goers as they would in real life.
This is also an industry that’s unafraid to embrace automation and concepts like machine learning. AI-powered chatbots, game personalization and fraud detection procedures are becoming increasingly commonplace – and expected by users everywhere! Meanwhile, operators are making use of something known as big data analytics, which gives them some pretty valuable insights into player preferences and behaviors – letting them tailor their gaming experience to match it. They can also tweak their marketing strategies, improving customer retention and ensuring a unique, personalized user experience.
Responsible Gaming and New UKGC Rules
As important as digital tech is to iGaming, the UK’s industry simply wouldn’t exist without the responsible gaming practices specified by the UK Gambling Commission. Player safety and security is a core tenet of ethical online gambling and it’s something the UK ecosystem takes very seriously indeed.
For instance, its strong stance on responsible gaming promotes a safe gambling environment through initiatives like GAMSTOP, collaborations with support organizations and by encouraging features like deposit limits and time-out options across gambling platforms.
Since 2023, the UKGC has been undergoing a process of overhauling several policies surrounding iGaming, all with the aim of ensuring transparency and fairness to support both players and operators. Stake limits for online slot games were formally introduced last autumn, with maximum stakes of £5 and £2 for gamers aged 25+ and between 18 and 24 respectively.
Since then, the commission has also announced a series of widespread changes in parallel with a recent Government White Paper – High Stakes: Gambling Reform for the Digital Age. These include a reduction in the intensity and speed of online games and betting products, to make them fairer and to provide a higher-quality gaming experience – applicable from January 2025.