Denmark’s sports betting market stalls despite Euro 2016

denmark-sports-bettingDenmark’s regulated online gambling market saw sports betting revenue decline in the second quarter, despite the impact of the Euro 2016 football tournament. Figures released Thursday by the Spillemyndigheden regulatory agency showed total betting and online gaming revenue of DKK 935m (US $140.7m) in the three months ending June 30. The figure is 16% higher than the same period last year but 4% lower than Q1 2016’s total. The online casino vertical generated revenue of DKK 355m, up one-fifth year-on-year and up 3% sequentially. Online poker was flat year-on-year at DKK 40m but down DKK 5m sequentially. Slots remain the dominant form of online casino play, scoring 68% of the total casino revenue pie, with roulette (6%) and blackjack (5%) the next most popular casino games. Sports betting revenue totaled DKK 540m, 15% higher year-on-year but 7.6% below Q1’s total. The numbers might be expected to show a sequential gain, given the hoopla surrounding Euro 2016, but perhaps Denmark’s failure to qualify for the tourney dampened enthusiasm. Online sports betting accounted for 65.5% of the total betting figure, up from 63.5% in Q1, the first quarter in which the regulator has broken out online figures. Both online and land-based betting showed sequential declines in Q2, although land-based fell harder (14%) than online (4%). The 25,500 land-based machines in gaming halls and restaurants brought in DKK 400m, up DKK 20m sequentially but down DKK 15m year-on-year, the first time in six quarters that the land-based product had failed to generate positive growth. Denmark’s seven land-based casinos reported revenue of DKK 100m, up from DKK 90m a year ago, the biggest quarterly gain since the agency started compiling statistics in 2012.