Italy’s online gambling gave their Gross Gaming Revenue the boost it needed in December 2021 and statistics show that the sector has a promising year ahead. Online casinos, slots, and sports betting prove to be the greatest contributors.
Italian online gambling reached its highest total revenue in December 2021, since May last year. This is due to the country’s online casino industry experiencing a record month and Italy’s online Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) needed the push, as it experienced a decline with year-on-year growth.
Reports show that the republic’s total GGR increased to €312 million in December, from November’s €304.2 million. Compared to December 2020, this is a 13% decrease when the country had a record-breaking €359 million in turnover for GGR and this number still holds the record.
Online casino and slot GGR saw its best month so far, while sports betting experienced a drop in turnover for online and retail segments combined.
Online Casino and Slots Come Out on Top
For month-on-month performance, the online casino and slot segment raked in the highest in its history, ending at €165.5 million. Online casino operators seem to share the market evenly as no single brand dominated the pack. Snai, a subsidiary of Playtech, holds the largest share at 9.1% and Sisal is the runner-up at 8.5%. Pokerstars and Lottomatica are third and fourth on the list with 8.2% and 7.5% market share.
Sports betting, the second largest segment in Italy’s online gambling industry, closed on €125.1 million for December which is a tremendous drop in bet values compared to 2020 December when this segment ended on €177.1 million. Online sports betting hit an all-time high in February 2021 at €185.5 with the UEFA Champions League knockout phase.
Combined figures of online and retail sports betting indicated a decline in the vertical from November figures as well as year-on-year with a total GGR of €204.80 million of which retail contributed €79.7 million. Italians bet more during the UEFA and FIFA leagues which could mean an increase for the country’s GGR in the next couple of months. Online wagering tends to be the most popular choice.
Other igaming segments include poker tournaments, cash poker, and bingo, and these contributed €9.3m, €6.3m, and €5.8m, respectively. Poker tournaments and cash poker recorded their best month since April 2021, and bingo achieved its highest figures since May.
Fiercely Competitive Market
In the online casino and slot category, operators within the regulated industry compete at the highest level and the market share shows how fierce competition is. Playtech’s Snai secured the largest segment after PokerStars held the spot for quite a while. Sisal also passed the long-time leader as their market share increased to 8.46% with PokerStars dropping to 8.22%.
Sportsbook operators have a clear leader as Goldbet reigns over 15.4% of the combined sports betting segment and with retail revenue, they contributed 23%. Snai secured second place in online and retail sports betting with a market share contribution of 15.1% and Sisal placed third with 13.6%. Snai and Sisal both dominated online-only sports betting figures while Bet365 came in at a 10.9% share of the segment.
PokerStars are the obvious favourite for Italian card players as they dominate 47.53% of the market share, with their closest competitor being Sisal at 10.08% in the tournaments segment.
A Great Year for iGaming
Compared to 2020 igaming figures, Italy’s online gambling industry experienced a 46.1% growth in revenue, ending at €3.46 billion for 2021. Casino and slots ended the year with total revenue of €1.77 billion, and sports betting ended at €1.44 billion. The smaller contributors, like poker tournaments, poker cash, and bingo, closed the year on totals of €106 million, €71.2 million, and €66.6 million respectively.
With major sports events coming up and what could be the most innovative year in igaming, Italy has promising potential for online gambling revenue in 2022.
Video slots have improved since the days of the three-reel slot games, with a greater number of paylines and ways to win, and superb features all designed to keep you playing. Knowing how these work can guide you to maximise your potential profits.
Kate Gavrilenko of Platipus Gaming explains how slot mathematical models are built, balancing RTP, volatility, probabilities, payouts and bonus features for successful games.
Let’s look at three exclusive welcome bonuses available to online players through GamblersPick. Grab any of the following exclusive promotions and start playing at trusted, reviewed online casinos with generous offers available regularly.
Casinos
Games
Jackpots
