UKGC tracks record Q1 slots activity against sports declines

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has recorded a 12% increase in online total gross gambling yield (GGY), during the first quarter of the financial year of 2024.

The Commission sourced data on the gambling industry, covering online and in-person gambling with licensed betting operators found on Britain’s high streets. The commission has been collecting data from March 2020 to June 2024.

Providing data for Q1 2024 (April to June), the Commission declared that online total GGY, covering approximately 80% of the online gambling market, reached £1.46 billion, a 12% increase YoY.

Online growth saw Slots activity reach new highs across GGY, spins, and average monthly active accounts, as the segment GGY rose by 10% year-over-year.

The commission noted that it is “currently investigating the categorisation of certain products.” While this could result in some data changes between verticals, it shouldn’t impact the overall totals.

The number of bets and/or spins rose by 11% compared to the same period last year, reaching a new peak for the second consecutive quarter at 24.5 billion. Meanwhile, the average monthly active accounts across all verticals grew by 9%.

The UKGC reported that slots reached new highs across the dataset in GGY, spins, and average monthly active accounts.

Slots GGY hit £642 million, a 10% increase YoY. The number of spins rose by 12% to 22.4 billion, and average monthly active accounts grew by 11% to 4.4 million per month.

The number of online slots sessions lasting longer than an hour rose by 8% to 9.6 million, while the average session length stayed at 17 minutes. Approximately 6% of all sessions lasted more than an hour, which is the lowest percentage recorded in the dataset.

Major sporting events such as UEFA Euro 2024 significantly impacted real event betting, with Q1 GGY reaching £625 million, a 16% increase compared to the same period the previous year.

The number of bets for real event betting fell by 7% YoY, while average monthly active accounts rose by 11%.

For other verticals in terms of GGY: other gaming (including casino) stood at £159.6 million, virtual betting at £10.3 million, esports betting at £4.3 million, poker at £14.1 million, and other at £2 million.

For licensed betting operators, covering approximately 85% of the retail betting market, GGY declined by 1% compared to Q1 2024, reaching £582 million. The total number of bets and spins fell by 1% to 3.2 billion.

By product per GGY, over-the-counter betting stood at £168.4 million, self-service betting terminals at £123.9 million, and machines at £290.1 million.

Last month, the UKGC published its first annual Gambling Survey for Great Britain report as the commission aims to “establish a new baseline for understanding gambling behaviour in Britain.”

In response, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC)  stated that its members are concerned about the GSGB research and interpretation of datasets. They believe its findings may be “unreliable” and overstate gambling participation and gambling-related harm.