Figures released Thursday by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) show ‘real event’ betting was the only major gaming vertical to report a revenue increase from August to September, with the return of top flight football pushing betting revenue up 15% to £189.6m. The number of active bettors rose 14% month-to-month while the total number of bets rose only 5%.
Online slots, the Loki of online gambling’s Marvel universe, saw more players make fewer bets, as active player ranks rose 6% from August to September while total slots bets and operator revenue both fell 4%. In fact, September’s slots revenue of £157m was the lowest monthly total since the UKGC began its pandemic market watch in April.
Non-slots casino revenue fell 5% despite the total number of bets rising 2%. The ranks of active casino gamblers fell 4%, meaning the absence of casino dilettantes left the more committed players to shoulder the load. Market-wide, the return of sports resulted in the share of gamblers who wagered on more than one activity falling to 32% in September from 41% in April.
Online poker’s brief pandemic resurgence is truly toast, with the vertical reporting across the board declines in revenue (-5%), active players (-6%) and number of bets placed (-13%) in September. Nearly the same pattern applied to virtual betting revenue (-9%) and number of bets (-8%) despite virtual actives staying roughly flat.
September marked the second full month of retail betting activity following spring’s shutdown and consumer skittishness regarding face-to-face interaction was on full display. While the number of over-the-counter bets was up 3% from August to September, bets with self-service betting terminals rose 24% — although OTC wagers still dwarf SSBT bets by a factor of six – and in-shop machine gaming reported 7% growth.