According to the latest data published by the UK Gambling Commission, the gambling industry in July remained stable, with some 11.3 million active players, approximately the same number as in June.
However, online gross gambling revenue dropped 1% in July compared to the June figures, totalling £457 million. The change came as a result of a significant 19% drop in sports betting following the UEFA EURO 2020 Championship. Total bets recorded dropped by 7% to £252 million, while the number of active players decreased by 2% to 5.5 million.
Online slots activity steadily increased during June and July
Even though gambling and sports betting experienced a decline, playing online slots gained popularity. The gross gambling yield from this type of gambling increased 4% to £187 million from June to July. The number of active slots players rose 1% to 3.1 million.
Another important parameter recorded by the UKGC was the length of slots sessions. Namely, the number of sessions that lasted longer than an hour increased 4% to 2.4 million, whereas those of average length remained steady.
The leading online sportsbook in the UK as of Q2 2021 is Betfred
According to Statista and Datametrics, the UK sportsbook with the largest search visibility as of the second quarter of 2021 is Betfred, accounting for 3.12% of the entire market. Betfred is followed by Paddy Power (3.01%) and third-ranked Betway, with a share of 2.52%.
The largest share of problem gamblers in the UK belongs to the 35-44 age group
A survey conducted by Statista published in April 2021 revealed that the largest percentage of UK residents who deal with problem gambling are 35 to 44 years old. In contrast, none of the participants aged 65 and older has been categorised as a problem gambler in this study of 4,009 individuals aged 16 or older.
