Report
Illegal online gambling: Consumer engagement and trends
The Gambling Commission’s report into estimated trends in consumer engagement with illegal gambling websites.
Overall experience of online gambling
When taking into account any experience of online gambling – regardless of whether or not they spent their own money – a total of 8 percent of young people reported having had some experience. This included 3 percent each who had placed a bet on eSports, placed a bet on a website or an app, and played casino games online. Fewer young people had experience of playing bingo online (2 percent) or National Lottery online instant win games (1 percent).
Boys were more likely than girls to have experienced placing a bet on a website or app (4 percent compared to 1 percent), to have played casino games online (4 percent compared to 1 percent) and to have placed a bet on eSports (3 percent compared to 1 percent). In contrast, girls were more likely than boys to have experienced playing online bingo (3 percent compared to 2 percent).
The proportion of young people who had experienced some form of online gambling in the last 12 months was higher than in 2023 (6 percent in 2023 and 8 percent in 2024). Young people were more likely in 2024 to have placed a bet on eSports, to have placed a bet on a betting website or app (both increasing from 2 to 3 percent) and to have experienced playing casino games online (increasing from 1 to 3 percent).
Table 5.1: Type of online gambling have experienced in last 12 months, in 2022, 2023 and 2024
Table 5.1 information
GC_GAMSPEND. Have you ever done any of the following activities?
GC_GAMSPENDWHEN. When did you last do this activity? Was it...?
Base: All answering 2022 (2,559), 2023 (3,453), 2024 (3,489).
| Type of online gambling | 2022 (percentage) | 2023 (percentage) | 2024 (percentage) | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2022 | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Had experienced online gambling in past year | 10% | 6% | 8% | Significant decrease | Significant increase |
| Placed a bet on eSports | 3% | 2% | 3% | No significant difference | Significant increase |
| Placed a bet on betting website and/or app | 3% | 2% | 3% | No significant difference | Significant increase |
| Played casino games online | 2% | 1% | 3% | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Played bingo online | 1% | 2% | 2% | Significant increase | No significant difference |
| National Lottery instant win games | 1% | 1% | 1% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
Last updated: 7 November 2024
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